Ichigo Kurosaki, the Dark Knight
by I always wanted to post a fic
Summary: What if the Bleach characters were Batman Heroes and Villians?
1. Chapter 1

**All I can say is that I've been playing too much Arkham City. So I was bored and came up with this idea of who would the Bleach characters be in the Batman world. I've assigned a few characters already, and have a framework for a few more chapters yet, so hopefully if life doesn't get in the way, there will be a bit of meat to this story.**

**I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.**

**As a side note, this work was inspired by the Batman comics, recent movies and Arkham games, so forgive the hybrid universe I'm making if it doesn't match up with Batman canon. I will likely tweak things to suit the Bleach characters.**

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><p>It was raining.<p>

Water cascaded down the side of Karakura City's skyscrapers. The imposing structures standing silent vigil over the myriad streets that ran a spider web over the surface of the great city. On those streets, people rushed about, eager to get out of the rain, making their way to their favourite bars and restaurants. The night was young, and rain or no, the Karakura nightlife was just about to kick in.

High above it all, Batman stands, on the edge of the Kurosaki Inc. Tower. The rain does not bother him, nor does the threat of falling from his precarious perch. Stoically, he observes his domain, the territory he won back from the crime and corruption of the Karakura underworld.

But it's a constant battle. A battle he fiercely waged every night. At least when he could, when the duties and responsibilities of Ichigo Kurosaki didn't hold him back. Like tonight, he was supposed to be attending a charity gala thrown by Mayor Yamamoto in the Karakura Theatre in Old Karakura Town. The place held too many bad memories for Batman, the site of his first and greatest failure. As far as he was concerned, Ichigo had died there with his parents.

So instead, he sent Toshiro to escort his little sister Karin and a sizeable check to make up for his absence.

Batman's scowl deepens.

One of the drawbacks of being a member of the uber-rich Kurosaki family was the social obligations that came with the name. The charity was about helping the homeless, a cause that was close to the heart of his mother, and it was expected that her children support it. Karin had raised hell about going to the 'stuffy-boring-lame-dance', as she put it, but had shut up quickly enough when he informed her that Hitsugaya would be taking her. At all of eighteen, she and Yuzu were about ready to enter the adult world, and unfortunately, that seemed to include crushes on uptight, smartass, snow-heads with a chip on their shoulder. At the very least, Toshiro would be able to defend her; he had snuck in earlier and hidden his Robin costume and gear in an old locker in the basement. A precaution Ichigo had insisted on. Old Karakura Town was next to the Hueco Mundo district, home of the 'Hollows', as the press called the gangs of Karakura.

More often than not, Batman's patrol would end up there, cracking skulls and leaving presents for Commissioner Inoue and the KCPD.

And speaking of Inoue, the Bat-signal flickered to life, illuminating the heavy clouds with the call for aid from atop the Karakura City Police Headquarters.

Batman stirs, measuring distance and trajectory before leaping from the building, wind rushing past his pointed ears in free-fall. Waiting, judging for the right moment to…

Now!

Suddenly, his cape flares and stiffens, pulling him from his plunge, sending him gliding between the buildings of his city. In the evening rain, the citizens below cannot make him out against the dark clouds. Batman soars like his name sake, the moment stretching, freeing him from his demons, if only for a moment. A ledge rushes up on him, the lip of an apartment building. While ordinary men might have been concerned by this, Batman was master of his domain, and the expert at navigating it. He whips out his grapple hook, aims, and fires in an instant, tugging on the cord, using his momentum to pull himself over the building and propel himself higher in the air.

Batman continues in this fashion, until he lands on the roof of KCPD-HQ where Commissioner Sora Inoue is waiting for him.

"Batman."

"Commissioner."

Ichigo had adopted his gravelly 'Bat-voice' as Yuzu so cutely described it. A far cry from the carefree, suave and arrogant 'playboy-tone' as Karin mocked it. To complete his identity, he was wearing his trademark scowl.

Sora adjusted his umbrella as he fiddled with the dispatch in his hands.

"It's the Joker again."

Batman's scowl deepens, if possible. Ichimaru had been a thorn in his side pretty much from the beginning of his time as the Bat.

"What's he doing now?"

"We just received reports of him taking over the Mayor's charity ball. He and his goons have taken hostages. We've surrounded the place; I'm about to head there now. Thankfully some of the guests were able to escape in the confusion; I have officers debriefing them now while the paramedics look them over."

Batman kept his poker face, but inside, his mind was racing. His thoughts were interrupted by the incoming communication in his headset from Orihime.

"Oracle."

Sora flinches at the mention of his sister's alter ego. He still hadn't fully forgiven Batman or himself for what happened to her.

"Ichigo, you need to hear this, it was broadcast form the Karakura theatre two minutes ago, and is playing on all the major news media."

"I'll put you on speaker, I'm with the Commissioner"

"Playing it now"

"_People of Karakura, Shuuhei Hisagi here, reporting live from the Karakura Theatre where Joker has taken over and taken hostages. I've been given permission to send this report to let you all know that he is serious-_"

"_I would hardly say I'm ever serious. Hilarious, handsome, happy, but never serious, I can't be, it doesn't start with H see… H, just like your name Hisagi, hahahahahahah_"

"…_Right, He has taken hostages, the Mayor included. His goons have surrounded the room with tanks containing what he tells me are lethal doses of his laughing gas. The Joker is making only one demand._"

"_Bring the big, bad Bat out to play… Hahaha, see, there I go again with the alliteration._"

"He's calling you out." Sora growls.

"He'll get me. Have your men keep the perimeter. Joker has never been the most rational of criminals, even by their standards. I'll get in, disable the bombs and get the people out. Be ready when I give the signal to move in. Have his regular cell in Dangai Asylum ready."

"You know it's a trap."

"Best spring it then, before more innocents get hurt."

Sora looks back down at his dispatch for a second and when he looks up, Batman is gone.

'I hate it when he does that.' He thinks.

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><p>Batman is speeding through the streets in the Batmobile. Dodging traffic, he checks in with Orihime.<p>

"Did Karin and Toshiro get out?"

"Karin did, Juushiro is on his way to pick her up. Little Shiro stayed behind and suited up in the basement, I'll put you through to him now."

"Robin."

"Batman, I'm waiting in the basement, I counted 15 of Joker's goons and six canisters of his gas. They look easy enough to disarm. I figured you would want me to wait for you to arrive."

"Good. I'll be there soon to personally assess the situation."

"What? My assessment isn't good enough?"

"Not now Shiro."

"Robin! When I'm in the costume, my name is Robin. I always call you Batman on-the-job. Karin's fine, by the way, since you asked."

Rather than respond to the verbal barb, Ichigo shut off the communication and concentrated on the road. What was it about the Robin suit that made them such smartasses?

Batman's communicator goes off.

"Ichigo, I just got a text from Uryuu. He said that he heard about the theatre and he's coming to help."

Fantastic, Nightwing was coming to the party. He and Uryuu hadn't spoken to each other much since Batgirl was shot by Joker. He blamed Ichigo, and Ichigo blamed himself, it was one of the few things they agreed on. The day Orihime left hospital, Uryuu wheeled her to her car, helped her in then proceeded to tell Ichigo where he could stick his Robin costume and trust issues. He left for the neighbouring Bounthaven the next day, where he took on his own role as a crime-fighter. Ichigo could count on one hand the number of times he had spoken to Nightwing in the two years since he left. Orihime kept in regular touch with him, so for her sake, they tried to keep it civil when they did talk. She remained hopeful that the two would reconciliate, but the three of them knew better.

Batman shook his head to clear it of these distracting thoughts. He had a job to do. He had to save the civilians, defuse the bombs, subdue the henchmen and somehow keep Nightwing from murdering the Joker.

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><p>As the Batmobile races away, Rukia Kuchiki lowers her binoculars, losing sight of her beloved. Her ninja assassins surround her on the rooftop, ignoring the chill of the rain, awaiting her command. Soifon, her personal bodyguard, asks the question.<p>

"Would you like us to pursue him?"

Rukia ponders this for a second, then smirks.

"No, I know where he's going, there's no rush."

It was true. She and her father had waited years for a worthy successor. A few more hours wouldn't hurt.

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><p><strong>So yeah, please review. Especially beacause I need advice. I can't decide who to make Harley Quinn, I was thinking Matsumoto, becuase Joker is Gin, but I was also thinking of making her Poison Ivy, so any alternatives?<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

****I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.****

****I would like to remind everyone reading this that it's a hybird universe I'm making, so I'll probably fudge things to make them suit the story I want to tell.****

****Plus, thank you to the two people who have already reviewed. Both of them questioned which Robin Toshiro was, so I will state now that Toshiro is the Tim Drake equivalent. If you know your Batman well enough to question which Robin he is, I hope you'll recognise who I'm setting up the other characters to be.****

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><p>The Batmobile slows down to a quiet stop. Ichigo takes a moment to centre himself, before emerging as the Dark Knight.<p>

"Oracle. Give me an access point to the theatre."

"On it."

Ichigo turns his head. "Security, engage."

In response to his vocal command, the Batmobile locks down, black, metal plates sliding into position over the car.

Batman looks up, searching for a sturdy ledge. Finding one, he fires the grapple gun. The rope spirals upwards, before lodging itself in the concrete of the old apartment building his car rests under. He activates the mechanism, pulling himself over the ledge of the building. He rolls forward, sliding through a puddle in the pouring rain. Silently, he walks over to the northern side of the building.

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><p>Across the road, Sora Inoue was having a hell of a night.<p>

The media is on his case, Zaraki's chomping at the bit, Joker is insane as ever, and he's just learnt that not only is the Mayor in there, but so is Grimmjow Jeagerjaques. Grimmjow was a personal friend, the department's best criminal prosecutor and a public figure of note. Between him, the Mayor and Joker, the scene was quickly deteriorating into a real circus.

His police had done their jobs, the area was cordoned off and the lucky party guests herded to safety. He had the place surrounded, for all the good it would do him. Joker had flat out refused to negotiate with anyone, insisting that Batman would have to come in and get him. Sora hopes Batman drags him out, kicking and screaming.

"Commissioner Inoue!"

"Commissioner!"

He sighs. Better deal with the vultures now.

"I have time for two or three questions at most. Go."

"Commissioner, why is Joker doing this?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. Next."

"Commissioner, will Batman respond to the Jokers challenge?"

"I believe he is en-route now, yes, you in the back."

"Is it the policy of the KCPD to endorse vigilante violence? Surely this is a matter for the Police to handle, or do you need Batman to clean up you messes now?"

Sora bit the inside of his lip, holding back an angry retort. This was an old tactic, probably some upstart journo trying to make a name for himself.

"I will say this one more time. Batman has proven himself to be nothing but a friend to the people of Karakura. His experience with the 'Super-Villains ' of this city has been invaluable, as has his work with the lesser criminals that plague the streets. Now, I must excuse myself, I have work to do."

Sora turned and walked away, ignoring the calls form the assorted press behind him. On the upside, the rain seemed to be easing a little. As he walks along, Lieutenant Kenpachi Zaraki catches up with him, in full body armour.

"Come on Sora, let me at him, we can take the clown ourselves. We don't need the bat-freak."

"I'm going to let him have his chance, and that's final Zaraki."

"Feh. The Bat's not that tough, I bet I could take him."

"You're just sore he beat Bane before you could."

Zaraki frowned. He would never admit it, but it was true. It annoyed him that he never got a shot at Yammy Rialgo. Zaraki was an avid martial arts fan, and could appreciate the mastery he had seen in the Batman. Of course, this only made him want to test himself even more.

_Ring Ring_!

"Inoue here."

"Sora, it's me, Batman has entered the Theatre. Just thought you should know."

"Thanks Hime…"

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><p><strong>Five Minutes Earlier…<strong>

Batman had crept around the side of the building, using the shadows to escape the notice of the police and the Joker goons guarding the front. He wouldn't put it past Gin to leave a surprise for him at the back entrance, so Ichigo and Orihime agreed the eastern basement access would suffice. Toshiro promised to meet him there, and warn him if there were any traps.

The one miscalculation Batman made was that traveling this way would expose him to that alleyway…

Ichigo physically stops, and time seems to slow, as he recalls the night burned into his memory…

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><p><strong>Sixteen Years Ago…<strong>

It was a cool autumn night, and nine year old Ichigo Kurosaki was afraid.

Normally, he was a happy child, the apple of his mother's eye, if somewhat of a cry-baby, at least, according to his best friend Tatsuki. Tonight though, his father, Dr Isshin Kurosaki, brilliant surgeon, entrepreneur and pillar of Karakura Society, had taken his eldest child and darling wife Masaki for an evening movie premier. The movie had proved to be too much though, so Ichigo had begged his parents to skip out early. They snuck out through a side door and went on their way.

As they walked down the alley, Masaki scolded Isshin for his choice in movie, as Isshin defended himself, citing his son's need to be manlier, and face his fears head on. As they fell into their pattern of friendly bickering, the familiar routine soothed Ichigo, who basked in the family moment.

All that was shattered though, as a gun wielding thug emerged from the shadows.

"Gimme your wallet! Now!"

Quickly, Isshin placed himself between the would-be assailant and his family, thankful he had left the twins in Juushiro's care. Masaki moved to shield her son, who stood in stunned silence. Ichigo was unable to fathom why anyone would do this to someone else. He was still naïve to the way the world worked, knowing only the love and care of his parents.

"Now, now, calm down, no-one needs to get hurt."

Isshin slowly removed his wallet, and threw it at the thugs feet.

"There, you have the wallet, I promise not to call the police, can we please leave now?"

"NO! Stay where you are! You! I want that necklace…"

"No! Please, it belonged to my mother!"

"Leave her alone!"

"Give it!"

_Bang!_

For what would become the defining moment of Ichigo's life, it happened remarkably quickly. One second, they were struggling, the next, his parents had fallen, taken by the same bullet.

The thug, who Ichigo would later learn was named Grant Fisher, staggered back, as if unable to believe what he had done. Ichigo stared on in horror, as the moment sunk in and he realised his parents were gone.

"Look kid, I'm… I'm real sorry about this, I never meant to.. Ah… Look, I can't leave any witnesses behind..."

Fisher raised his weapon, ready to end the poor kid's life. A bat, disturbed by the noise, swooped in and began to attack Fisher. To this day, Ichigo never understood what a bat was doing this far into the city, but he bloody well appreciated the timing.

Fisher fired wildly into the air, attracting the attention of a nearby policeman on patrol. Fresh from the academy, Officer Zaraki made his first arrest and did his best to comfort the poor child, who had just lost his parents.

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><p><strong>Present Day<strong>

Ichigo lingered, if only for the moment, in respect to his dead moron of a Dad and angel of a Mum. The rest of that day was a blur to him. Being taken to the station, giving his statement, going back to the manor and crying himself to sleep… the one thing that rang clearly in his mind, was the sight of the bat harassing Fisher. Protecting him, like an avenger of the night. It was the inspiration behind Batman, who strove to be a symbol for the innocent, and doom for the wicked.

But, time was wasting. He swore to protect those who couldn't protect themselves. His father had often told him that his name meant 'one who protects', and Ichigo would do his best to live up to that. The people in the building were counting on him.

He crept to the door, activating his cowls sensors, to see what lay on the other side. No discernable traps, just the heat signature of Toshiro, awaiting him inside. He silently eases the door open and slips inside.

Robin looks up as Batman enters. He nods his head in acknowledgment. Batman looks Robin over. Toshiro modified the uniform to incorporate a hood, compensating for his bright white hair. Unlike Uryuu, who had nondescript, straight, black hair, Toshiro's head was a little more recognisable. He even went to the lengths of cutting it a little shorter; just so he could comfortably slick it back out of the way. His green eyes peer through their mask at Batman, waiting for his instructions.

"Let's do this."

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><p><strong>Fans of the Arkham games should recognise Batman's detective mode. Also, for reference, if you haven't played the game, search for Arkham City Robin and Arkham City Batman for references to what their uniforms look like (Though Ichigo isn't quite that muscular in this story). Please review.<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.**

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><p>Grimmjow was not having a good night.<p>

First, the Mayor had expected him to give a speech, _that no-one had warned him about!_ He bluffed his way through what had to be among the most awkward five minutes of his life. Someone was sooo getting fired for that. Then, he had to tolerate that self-righteous ass of a criminal defender, Tousen, Mr _I'm-blind-and-milk-it-for-jury-sympathy_, who spent half the night sucking up to Mayor Yamamoto. Then, to complete his evening, Joker had waltzed in like he owned the place and taken over, all because he wanted a pissing match with Batman. He expected this crap from Riddler, not Ichimaru.

So now here he is, sitting on the floor, his white suit covered in flecks of blood – Grimmjow was proud that it took six men to subdue him – hands tied behind his back, awaiting the convenience of Karakura's most notorious pyscho.

"Awww, what's wrong Jeagerjaques?"

"Yeah, hehe, it's a party, enjoy yourself"

And now the goons were taunting him, like they mattered or something. They were dressed in standard Hollow/Joker gang fare, clown masks, make-up, bright clothing, like a carnival sideshow gone wrong. Grimmjow contented himself with glaring at them, keeping their attention on his face while he furiously worked at the knots on his wrist.

"He doesn't look to happy. Maybe we should dose him."

"Are you out of your mind?" The goon hissed. "You know what the boss gets like when you mess with his plans!"

Fearfully glancing over to the Joker, they notice he isn't paying attention to much of anything, busily telling his jokes to a very unimpressed Yamamoto down at the front of the room.

While they were looking away, Grimmjow felt something hit the ground behind him with a soft 'clink'.

"What was that?"

The crooks turned around, pointing their semi-automatic carbines at him. '_Where the hell did Joker get his hands on those anyway?_' Grimmjow gave them his best deadpan stare and coughed quietly. For his trouble, the goon on the left smacked him with the butt of the gun.

"Smartass."

"Problem boys?"

"No Mr. J"

"Good, check on our other guests, see to it they're enjoying our hospitality. Offer them a drink, a massage… hmmm, come to think of it, we can't really guarantee them a happy ending can we? Huhuhu."

"Sure thing boss."

The goons walked away, leaving Grimmjow to rub his ropes up and down the sharp edge that had presented itself behind him, he had his suspicions about where it came from… and… free at last. Casually, he looked around, making sure no one was watching, before pulling his hands around to look at the catalyst of his freedom. A sharp edged batarang shined in the light. He looked around at the shadows in the room and smirked.

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><p>Batman looked away from the now free Jeagerjaques, trusting him to know what to do. He was perched on an old viewing balcony, in the converted ballroom. The lights in this corner of the hall were weak at best, allowing him some shadow-cover. The pseudo ballroom was really just the main theatre, rows of seats stripped from the ground, walls and floors redone to copy the original style of the theatre, all in an effort to maintain a classic piece of Karakura architecture that had been built when Ichigo's grandfather was a teen.<p>

He turned his attention back to the other henchmen in the room. While he was silently reducing their number, Robin was being guided through the process of disarming the canisters by Oracle. He had disarmed the first three and was working on the fourth, but the last two are in well-lit areas. To get to them, he would need a distraction, but there were still too many armed guards floating around for Batman to comfortably take the attention on himself.

There was a time when Ichigo would have charged them, combining tech with martial-arts to take them down, heedless of the personal danger. Ichigo might have, but the Batman knew better.

His scan of the thugs revealed the weapons they were carrying to be military issue 'Hell-Butterflies', likely stolen from an army depot somewhere. State-of-the-art and lethal. The upside to this, they were chipped, which meant they could be hacked. He pulled out his portable encrypter, boosting the signal strength to cover the furthest away four henchmen, quickly running his hack to internally shut down the guns firing mechanism, silently rendering them as useful as clubs.

With that sorted, he looked to the remaining Hollows, the seven henchmen who had escaped his earlier work. They would be easy enough. He withdrew a smoke bomb from his pouch, preparing to throw. He looked over to Robin, who was now watching him. He gave him a nod. Robin tapped his brow, in acknowledgement of what Ichigo wanted him to do.

The Joker hollows were milling about, minding their prisoners when a smoke bomb went off in their midst. Coughing and hacking, they were easy pickings for the Dark Knight, who swooped in, landing on one man's back, breaking his arm for good measure. The goons flailed about firing their weapons indiscriminately, but Batman's cowl sensors let him dodge them easily. A punch here, kick there, strike to the head, by the time the smoke cleared, Batman stood triumphant, appearing to not even notice the knocked out thugs at his feet.

"Oh goody, the Bat's here!" Joker happily exclaims.

"Give it up Ichimaru."

"You know, it's really not very fair that you know my name, when I don't know yours. Sharing is caring, you know."

Batman narrowed his eyes, and began stalking forward, unfazed by the four henchmen pointing their rifles at him.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Fire you idiots!"

The hollows didn't need to be told twice. They took aim, and pulled the triggers, only to be shocked when their guns wouldn't shoot. They began checking their weapons, looking for the faults in them, one going so far as to tap the rifle against a nearby pillar.

"Oh, I suppose that's your doing." Joker commented in his serious voice, the voice that usually only came out when things weren't going his way and he was getting angry.

Giving up on fixing the weapons, the hollows dropped their carbines and settled for charging Batman. They must have been new or something, because they honestly believed they stood a chance if they rushed him. The first one threw a punch that was calmly caught by Batman, who the bent over, grabbed his knees and threw him over his shouler. While in the half crouch from his throw, Batman did a leg sweep, toppling the two nearest foes, one of whom concussed himself on the polished floor. Then, he went on the offensive, charging the last hollow and downing him with a couple lightning fast punches. Once he was taken care of, he noticed the first hollow getting up. A quick batarang to the temple saw to him, before he moved over to the last conscious hollow, who was standing there, unable to believe what happened to his three buddies in the last minute.

Batman took a few menacing steps, stopping short of the criminal, and giving him the patented Bat-glare. The poor hollow looked like he was going to pee himself.

"Boo"

The hollow flinched, and tripped over himself landing on his rear, before hastily trying to scramble away. Batman walked over, fist raised, ready to end it…

_Bang! Bang!_

Blood flowed from the newly made holes in the hollows chest who struggled briefly, before giving up and slumping to the ground lifelessly. Batman whirled around, and was confronted by the sight of Joker walking over, carrying a smoking gun.

"Two for flinching" He commented menacingly.

"That wasn't necessary Joker."

"Oh but it was Bats! He failed me, so now he can serve as a warning to my other men. Good help really is hard to find…" He finished ruefully.

Batman took a second to study Joker, he had updated his wardrobe. Gin Ichimaru was about the same height as Ichigo, but where Ichigo was muscle, Ichimaru was lanky and wiry. The pinstripe purple suit had survived, but the shirt was no longer the customary yellow with green tie, Joker having opted for a dark green shirt and purple bow-tie. The white make-up and red smile was the same, and his straight green hair remained as it always has.

"So, here we are again, you, me and a gun." Joker said, raising the weapon to Ichigo's chest.

Before either of them could act, a red batarang knocked the gun from Jokers hand, Robin descending from the balcony above. Taking advantage of the distraction, Batman charged forward, gripping Joker by the throat, lifting him in the air.

"It's over Joker."

"It's… _gasp_, not over… _wheeze_, until I say…_ gasp_, it is!"

Joker pulled a detonator from his pocket, and pushed the button…. Nothing happened…

"What!"

Tired of the situation, Batman let go and pulled out some cuffs. He turned a wheezing Joker over on the ground and cuffed his hands behind his back. Once this was done, he stood up and glared at Toshiro.

"We will be discussing your interference later."

Robin bit back a retort, knowing he was right. Ichigo had made him promise, that when it came to the really dangerous criminals, he would hold back and only do what Ichigo told him, no more. All the hollows were accounted for and Grimmjow had seen to the quiet and unnoticed evacuation of some of the hostages. Robin was only supposed to disarm the bombs and escort the hostages outside. But he was just so tired of being treated like a kid! How many kids spend their nights running around beating up criminals, jumping off roofs and solving crimes?

"You should listen to him son, he only has your best interests at heart, especially after what happened to the last two sidekicks. One dead, one para-"

_Bam!_

Furious, Ichigo raised his fist to strike again, but didn't need to as Joker was unconscious.

"Hit him again, you know he deserves it."

Batman looked up and noticed Nightwing walking over, a look of cool detachment on his face, but Ichigo knew better. He knew that Uryuu Ishida was barely holding back the urge to wail on the unconscious Ichimaru. Choosing to ignore him, he contacted Orihime over his communicator.

"Oracle, tell your brother he can come in now, and get him to have some paramedics look everyone over. Once Joker is in custody, I'm going to leave before it gets too crowded."

"Roger. My sensors tell me that Uryuu is there. Could you please ask him to visit the manor when you're done?"

"Nightwing, Oracle requests your presence at the Batcave."

"Tell her I'll come, but she'll have to let me in."

"Robin can do that; he'll be going with you."

"WHAT!"

"This is not up for discussion." Ignoring the sulking teen, Batman picked Joker up, and went in search of Commissioner Inoue.

"This is so unfair."

"I understand kid, it's part of the reason I left"

"Why is it so hard to get him to trust me to do my job? And don't call me kid!"

Images of Orihime on the operating table and Renji lying in a pool of his own blood flashed before Ishida's eyes.

"He has his reasons." Uryuu said softly. "And I get to call you kid because I can still do this."

Nightwing patted Robin on the head before walking towards the back door he had broken in from, leaving a sputtering Robin to catch up.

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><p><strong>Another chapter done. I think the next one may see the appearence of a certain cat-lady and explore how Toshiro came to be Robin.<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

****I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.****

********I would like to remind everyone reading this that it's a hybird universe I'm making, pulling from different versions of Batman and elements from Bleach, so I'll probably fudge things to make them suit the story I want to tell.********

********It has been awhile since I updated this, The Dark Knight Rises coming out sort of prompted me to want to do a bit more writing, at least before I get busy with stuff again.********

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><p>Batman stalked his way back to the Batmobile, confident that nobody had touched it. Ordinary hollows couldn't get past the security, and learned quickly there wasn't much point in trying. The only criminals who had the guts to mess with his ride would do it to his face. The Super-Villains tended towards the dramatic, so he usually had plenty of warning... Like that time Rialgo had thrown it at him…<p>

Just as he was about to unlock the door, Batman paused. Something was tickling the back of his brain, a familiar sensation, the instincts he had honed at the Kuchiki mansion, training with Byakuya and his legion.

He was being watched.

Batman kept his breathing even; he didn't want to alert the person(s) watching him. The presence didn't feel inherently evil, it felt somewhat…

Mischievous.

"I know you're there, Yoruichi"

_Thuft_.

The softest of impacts, from the most graceful of landings, came from over Ichigo's right shoulder. Next the clicking of heels (How does she do anything in them?) alerted him to the fact she was coming over.

He didn't turn around, not because he was trying to be dramatic, rather, he needed a moment to compose himself. Ichigo had always had trouble dealing with the female villains and criminals. His parents and Juushiro had raised him to be a gentleman, and gentlemen didn't hit women. In the modern world, women had just as much potential to break the law as men did. Though they didn't seem to do it quite as often as their male counterparts, a fact Ichigo was grateful for.

This naturally led to a moral conflict when the Batman couldn't afford to be a gentleman. Hitting Quin was never fun. In fact, he actively avoided it, preferring to use submission holds or one of his gadgets. Then there was Ivy. If it wasn't for his iron resolve and mental fortitude, Karakura would have fallen to one of her schemes long ago. That pheromone dust she favours is just cheating. It wasn't too big an issue in his early days, but as time went on, some criminals noticed his reluctance in dealing with the opposite sex. Gangs began to aggressively recruit women and for a while, it gave Ichigo a headache. Uryuu was no help, with the then-Robin being of similar morals.

The solution came in the form of the commissioner's little sister. Batgirl was more than happy to punch out Matsumoto while Batman dealt with Ichimaru. The normally sweet girl was quite vicious in her fights with Poison Ivy, though Batman suspected it was partly jealousy when she hit Robin to 'help clear his head' whenever Kurotsuchi's love dust got to Uryuu. Batgirl's presence on the team seemed to scare a lot of women straight, making Batman's life easier on patrol. Since Orihime became Oracle, it was Tatsuki's presence as Huntress that deterred the would-be lady hollows, though Tatsuki was a whole other loose-cannon wrapped in a headache Batman didn't have time for right now.

The sound of Yoruichi's seductive chuckle brushed his ears, accompanied by the feel of her running her hand along his shoulders as she stepped around him in a curl. Finishing her turn, Catwoman came to a stop in front of Batman, pushed her athletic body up against his and practically purred.

"Hmmm, someone's been working out."

"Someone is meant to be in prison"

Yoruichi pouted, and took a step back from him, looking for all the world to be a scolded kitten. Ichigo was mentally breathing a sigh of relief. He may have looked cool and collected on the outside, but when she had pressed herself up to him, it was all he could do to not pass out from a most undignified nosebleed. He hadn't done that since he was staying at the Kuchiki manor and Rukia had snuck into his room naked. He couldn't help it. Ichigo Kurosaki, playboy extraordinaire, was used to attractive women throwing themselves at him. But something about Catwoman got to him. The tight, leather catsuit certainly wasn't helping, nor, oddly enough, the cat ears stitched into her hood.

Yoruichi frowned. A lesser man would have given into her pout by now. But, she supposed, if he was a lesser man, this wouldn't be anywhere near as fun. The droplet of blood on his nose was a sure sign she was getting to him at any rate.

"Prison didn't agree with me." she said airily. "Besides, you know you missed me."

"Just like the Kasumiōji missed their heirlooms." Ichigo deadpanned.

"They weren't using them."

"Not the point."

"I missed our banter."

"That's a shame; you're going to be missing it for an even longer time yet."

Batman took a step forward, intent on beginning the long, frustrating, yet if he was being honest, entertaining, process of capturing the cat-burglar. The two of them would engage in a game of 'Bat and Cat' as Yoruichi was fond of calling it. They would trade barbs as she tried to shake him, while he pursued her over the rooftops, culminating in either her escape or him capturing her.

Unfortunately, as he began to take his second step, his communicator buzzed him.

"Busy" Batman growled into his communicator, never taking his eyes off of Catwoman. Yoruichi decided to start pulling faces at him, recognising he was talking into a head set. Geez, she could be such a child sometimes.

"Ichigo, a turf fight has broken out between the Adjuchas and the Menos, there are two Policemen on the scene, but their closest backup is at least five minutes away, and last report I heard stated there were gunshots."

"Send the co-ordinates to the car."

Ichigo sighed. Loathe as he was, he would have to let Yoruichi go for now. In the grand scheme of things, she wasn't a major threat. At worst, she might steal a couple jewels or a museum piece, and he would have to track her down. Those Policemen would need all the help they could get; a lot of available officers were probably still busy with clean-up from Joker's earlier escapades.

"Awww, leaving so soon?"

"This isn't over."

"Of course not. Catch-ya cutie"

With that said Yoruichi blew him a kiss and sauntered off into the night. Batman swore he would track her down soon. But right now, he had to burn rubber. Opening the hatch, he vaulted into the driver's seat and started the engine.

"Oracle, could you have Robin do a screen for potential targets for Catwoman."

"Sorry Ichigo, is that what you were busy with?"

"It's fine, we have bigger problems."

Batman cut off the transmission, focussing on the job ahead.

* * *

><p>"Master Histsugaya, would you like some candy?"<p>

A vein throbbed on Toshiro's head, as he reminded himself that Mr Ukitake meant well.

"No thank you, Juushiro"

Ukitake excused himself from the library, leaving the young crime-fighter to study in peace. While Ukitake's constant attempts to ply him with sweets could be bothersome, Toshiro was mature enough to realise there were worse problems to have, but he was eighteen freaking years old! Why did everyone insist on treating him like a child? Even Yuzu patronised him, but being mad at her just didn't feel right. He knew he should be grateful. The Bat family had been nothing but accommodating since the day he had barged into their lives.

**Flashback, four years ago.**

At the age of fourteen, Toshiro was sitting in Ichigo Kurosaki's chair, in Ichigo Kurosaki's office, in Kurosaki Tower, gloating over how clever he was and how stupid everyone else is. He knew Batman's secret identity. Toshiro had been interested in the Batman ever since he first saw him in person at the Hirenkyaku Quincy Circus, two years prior. Scarecrow had attacked, dosing the audience with his fear gas.

Before that happened, Toshiro was enjoying himself. Granny had surprised him and his adopted sister Momo with tickets to the circus. He had always been fascinated by the acrobatics the Quincy were renowned for and their deadly accuracy with ranged weapons. So when that psycho Kurotsuchi attacked, the Quincy performers had actually held their own, before numbers started to overwhelm them.

While everyone had panicked, Toshiro had noticed one of the famous Kurosaki's striding purposefully to an exit, disappearing. Minutes later Batman had appeared and started to wade through the thugs, just in time to save the eldest Ishida child, who was valiantly fighting the thugs with his bow and arrows. That wasn't when he figured it out. At the time, the preteen was in awe of the caped crusader, and swore to one day be just like him. Batman was still relatively new, only having been operating for the last year or so.

So for two years, Toshiro trained. He trained his body, taking up Karate, Judo, and Aikido in his spare time. He trained his mind, studying late into the night, books on strategy and stealth, internet articles on lock picking and trap setting, advanced law, advanced weapon tactics, anything and everything he thought could come in handy as costumed vigilante. Toshiro had always been a bright boy, so when his teachers questioned his choice of study material, he claimed an interest in doing something in police or law, and they were more than happy to accommodate him.

He started tracking Batman's movements. He also took note when Robin arrived on the scene, and when Batgirl started running with the heroes. Any news clipping, T.V report, he hoarded them. His kindly grandmother knew not of the extent of his obsession. She just thought he was taking his study and health seriously. In fact, she was delighted when Toshiro requested extra serves of fruit and veggies. Most young men only ate unhealthy rubbish.

As his training continued, puberty kicked in and he began to develop his physique. He could run faster, train harder, last longer. His grades improved as his mental conditioning took effect. But none of this mattered to Toshiro if he couldn't be like his hero, Batman.

One day, out of the blue, Toshiro figured it out. It suddenly made sense. Ichigo Kurosaki is the Batman. One of the richest men in the world spent his nights in a costume beating up criminals. Once he absorbed this, he couldn't stop noticing it. The two had the same build, Robin used moves he hadn't seen since the Quincy Circus, and Batgirl had the same style of hair as the commissioner's sister.

So after putting it all together, he decided to confront Kurosaki. He bluffed his way through the foyer ("I'm here to see my dad, he works in accounting.") and snuck his way to the office he was occupying.

"Excuse me, who are you?"

The casual smile on his face seemed genuine and Toshiro had a hard time reconciling the politely confused billionaire in front of him with Karakura's Dark Knight.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, my name is Toshiro Hitsugaya, and I know that you're Batman."

The second he stopped talking, Toshiro scrutinized Kurosaki's face. Not even the tiniest twitch, though that could be explained if he was merely stunned that he'd been caught out.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"You're the Batman."

Ichigo walked over casually to his desk with a serene countenance, but on the inside, his mind was racing. Who was this kid? How did he find out? Had he told anyone? Did someone tell him? How much did he know?

Once Ichigo had pulled up alongside him, he adopted a confused expression.

"And why do you think I'm Batman?"

"You're Batman, Uryuu Ishida is Robin and Orihime Inoue is Batgirl."

Well crap, what to do now? Ichigo ruffled his hair and bent down to his level in the most patronizing manner he could manage.

"Kid, I wouldn't have time to be Batman. I run a company."

"Don't do that! And don't call me kid! Look, I know you're Batman, and I want to help you, I'm really good at fighting, and I'm really smart"

He pulled out his report cards from the last few years.

"See! Read the comments, all my teachers think I'm a genius, I'm in really good shape, I know Karate!"

"This is an impressive resume; maybe you would be interested in working for me when you get a bit older?"

"No! I want to help now!"

"Is this one of those hidden camera shows? Am I being set up?"

"NO! Please Batman, let me help you!"

"Look, Toshiro was it? I'm not a hero, I'm not Batman. So if you could hop off my chair please, I have a busy day ahead."

Ichigo buzzed his secretary.

"Lisa, could you please see the young gentlemen in here out."

A woman with glasses came in and ushered Toshiro out, seeing him out the door. Poor Toshiro was crushed. He knew Kurosaki would deny it, but he had hoped that he could prove himself and help him in some way.

As he walked home, something in him changed. His youthful optimism had been crushed, he felt disillusioned and let down. Like most teenagers, he felt that the world had let him down, and it pissed him off. This day saw the birth of a much more mature, pessimistic and cynical Toshiro.

* * *

><p><strong>Two years later…<strong>

Sixteen year old Toshiro Hitsugaya was walking through Karakura's back alleyways, trying to decide what he wanted for dinner. It wasn't the safest route home, but it was the quickest, and he could handle himself far better than his slightly-less-than-average height would suggest. Since his Granny had died and his adopted sister had disappeared, Toshiro was working after school to keep up his rent and pay for food. It wasn't so bad; his landlord was sympathetic and let him stay in his tiny apartment at a reduced rate.

As he debated his options, his head jerked back as some two bit thug grabbed him by the upper torso and pushed a knife to his throat.

"Aint no-one tolds ya it aint safe for little kiddies to be wonderin' round by demselves?"

Toshiro rolled his eyes. It was times like these he was thankful for the education he had. He was glad for the drive and intelligence that wouldn't leave him as some illiterate crook.

Hitsugaya could smell the pot on this Hollow's breath and reasoned that depending on how high he was, his reflexes would most likely be dulled. He snapped his hands up in a calculated risk, gambling that he wouldn't tighten his hold at the sudden movement. It paid off as Toshiro freed himself, spun and took two big steps away from the attacker. He sized his opponent up while waiting for the counter attack. The mask on his face was a symbol of the Menos gang. Not as dangerous as the Adjuchas, but not exactly your average thug. Toshiro knew he would have to play this one smart.

The Hollow charged forward, so Toshiro aimed a kick for his lower torso. His height worked to his advantage here, making it easier to get under his guard and push him back. The Hollow charged again and Toshiro kicked him again. This happened once more before the Hollow hesitated, realizing he would need to change tactics.

Hitsugaya took the chance to press forward and pressure him into making a mistake. It worked, as the hollow panicked and hastily swung his arm in a wild uppercut at the new aggressor. Toshiro calmly stepped to the left and used the back of his right wrist to push the hollow's hand up, using his natural momentum to force the hollow to overextend. He pressed his attack by jerking the Hollows arm severely to the left and engaging in a simple wrist-lock, causing a cry of pain.

"Argh!"

Toshiro finished the conflict by suddenly driving forward and pushing him against the nearby wall and bringing the knife hand of the Hollow around to press against his collar bone, angled towards the throat. Toshiro pressed the knife gently against his neck to imply the threat.

"When I let go, you're going to go home, rethink your life, and thank whoever you pray to that I'm feeling merciful. Understood?"

He reinforced his point by digging the knife in slightly. The hollow panicked.

"Yea-Ye-Yeah, man, please, just don't kill me kid!"

Hitsugaya nearly killed him for that remark alone. Instead, he calmly took a step back, throwing the knife down the nasty smelling dumpster on the other side of the alley.

"Hey man, that was me knife!"

Toshiro's glare shut him up. Without taking his eyes off him, Hitsugaya started to walk slowly backwards, knowing that the high criminal might see it as chance to attack if he just turned around. After a few steps, he hit a solid wall of muscle.

"Yo."

Startled, Toshiro lapsed in judgment and swung around, throwing a wild haymaker which was casually caught by Renji Abarai, the Robin-of-the-time.

* * *

><p><strong>So there, I'm actually still writing, even as I upload this, I just cut it off here because it was getting kind of long, so there will be at least one more chapter in the next few days.<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**It's been a while, I get busy ocassionally. The use of Bane has nothing to do with the Dark Knight Rises. Because he's merged with Yammy, hes going to be kind of stupid. Not quite Batman and Robin stupid, but not the cunning of the DKR Bane. **

******I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.******

* * *

><p><em>Bzzt Bzzt<em>.

Toshiro was startled out of his memories by the message alert on his phone.

'_Shiro, could you do a search for potential targets, specifically things Catwoman would be interested in, thank you, Orihime,_'

Hmmm, Shihouin must be out of prison. She's out a bit early. Toshiro put away the book he was reading and decided to go in search of a snack, something healthy, not that tooth rot Juushiro was pushing onto him before.

Wandering through Kurosaki Manor, Toshiro thought back to how his life changed after he ran into Renji.

* * *

><p><strong>Two years ago.<strong>

"Ya know, after that neat little display, I'm a bit disappointed in your reaction here."

Toshiro was literally stunned, sure, he had met Kurosaki at Kurosaki Tower, but to actually meet one of the heroes in costume was a bit much for him.

Renji's eyes shifted over the kids shoulder to the Hollow who was trying to sneak away while the scary kid and the even scarier vigilante weren't watching. Where Uryuu's Robin had established a reputation for being a graceful and efficient fighter, Renji favoured a more brutal style of fighting, which the Hollows had come to fear.

"Leaving is a good idea scumbag."

Needing no more encouragement, the Hollow turned tail and bolted. Renji would usually have roughed him up a bit, but the kid was the more immediate concern.

"You've got some nice moves there."

Toshiro continued being stunned, staring vacantly at Robin, trying to process the mixed emotions he was feeling. On the one hand, the repressed child in him was incredibly excited to meet him and was equally stoked that Robin, freaking Robin, had seen him do something badass.

But then the cynic in him reminded him that Kurosaki had been an ass, and Robin likely would too.

But it was Robin, standing there in the iconic red and black suit, with that yellow 'R' on his chest, and that cool cape thing—

No, get a grip Toshiro, play it cool. Both sides of him agreed to that.

"I've studied some martial arts, it comes in handy sometimes."

"I'll bet. I saw the whole thing. Scumbag had a point though, what are you doing out this late?"

"What are you doing out this late?!"

Toshiro winced inwardly. Nice going, he probably thinks you're a little smart-alec. Renji for his part just raised an eyebrow and looked at him. Seconds passed, but they felt like an age to the teen.

"Well, it's kinda what I do. Come on, I'll walk you home. Nobody's gonna mess with you when they see me."

Renji stared at him expectantly, until Toshiro realised that was his cue. He started walking home and Renji followed him silently. Five minutes later, the silence was suffocating, and Renji had to break it.

"You never answered my question."

"I work a part-time job at the Karakura Library, shelving and doing records stuff. I live out in Junrinan, so going through Hueco Mundo saves me an hour. If I stick to these alleyways, I can avoid the thugs, usually."

"I'm going to guess your parents are dead."

Toshiro actually stopped at that. He turned and stared at Robin, openly shocked that he stated it so bluntly. Most people got uncomfortable when he said they were dead, and Toshiro's inner cynic, who was a bit of a jerk, was looking forward to that.

Renji for his part smiled apologetically, Orihime was always telling him off for being too blunt. But he was an instinctual guy; he trusted his gut and liked to get to the point. A side effect of growing up on the street, it served him well as a crime fighter, but sometimes made things awkward in social situations.

"Ummm, yeah. I have to look after myself."

"For what it's worth kid, I get it. I'm sorry if I offended you just now. If you want, I can leave and let ya walk home, I'll follow you quietly and make sure you're left alone."

"No, it's fine. Let's just keep walking."

Awkward silence enveloped the two of them, as they continued down the backstreets of Hueco Mundo.

"Aren't you cold?"

"No, I don't mind the cold."

"Well I am. You keep going, and I'll be right back."

With that said, Robin slipped into a side alley he had just passed and seemingly disappeared. Toshiro stood still for a moment, shrugged his shoulders and kept going. Minutes passed and Toshiro was walking by himself, next thing he knew, Renji had appeared beside him holding two cups, a thermos and a brown paper bag. The image left Toshiro fairly nonplussed.

"Robin has a packed lunch?"

"Yep, and he's willing to share, sit with me kid."

Toshiro bit back his usual retort and decided to go along with it. How many people could say they shared a meal with one of the city's famous vigilantes? Renji for his part was wondering why he was doing this. He supposed his instincts were telling him this kid was worth the effort, and his instincts rarely saw him wrong.

So the two of them sat against a brick wall, in the middle of the night, and had a snack. Renji poured them both a cup of Yuzu's special hot chocolate, and gave him half his sandwich. If anyone were to walk by, the scene would have been ridiculous. They ate in silence, savoring their food.

"My parents died when I was little, my Granny took me in."

Renji looked up from his food and shifted his gaze over to Toshiro, who was deliberately not looking at him, afraid he would lose his nerve if he did.

"It was hard on her, I was so young, and she was too old to look after me by herself. She did her best though, and as I got older, I learned to look after myself to help take the strain off her. When Granny adopted my sister, she helped out and things were going great. Then about a year ago, Granny got really sick. We got part-time jobs so we could get her help, but there wasn't much they could do."

His tone was emotionless, but Renji could see the unshed tears in his eyes. In an unusual display of empathy, Renji realised that there wasn't much he could do, the kid needed to get this of his chest.

"Then, she died. We had a funeral, we said our goodbyes and then we went home. Children Welfare wanted to send us to foster homes, so we took all the money we could and ran away. My sister and I knew we would have to be smart if we wanted to survive. Momo looked older than she was, so she dropped out of school and got a job waitressing. She insisted I stay in school, because I was the smart one. I wanted to help though, so I got a job at the same place washing dishes, it sucked, but we were together. Then one day, she disappeared."

"Completely? Without a trace?"

"Yeah, I looked for ages, but I couldn't find her. I spent forever looking for her. I eventually had to give up when it started to affect my work and schoolwork. She wouldn't have wanted that. I got lucky though, a few days later, I managed to get my job at the Library, and it pays well enough that I'm not starving."

"What's your name kid?"

"Toshiro Hitsugaya."

"I like you Toshiro; I see a lot of potential in ya. Tell you what, I'll look into your sister's disappearance, see what I can dig up."

"Tha-Thanks Robin."

They continued eating, finishing their meals when Renji decided it was his turn to share.

"For what it's worth, I understand how hard it can be to live on your own. I was quite a bit younger than you when I ran away from home, I was sick of my Dad's crap. I managed to etch out a living on the street, but one day I got lucky. I met Batman."

Renji looked at Toshiro to see if the name drop had any effect on him. It seemed to startle him, making him sit upright suddenly.

"Yeah, you know how I met him? I tried to steal the wheels from the Batmobile. Man, I was so stupid back then, I knew whose car it was, I can't believe I ever thought stealing from the Batman would end well."

Toshiro for his part snorted. He couldn't imagine Kurosaki being amused.

"Turned out the stupidest thing I ever did was also the luckiest. I must have just caught him in a good mood or somethin, because instead of smacking me up the head… Well, he did do that… But yeah, he actually talked to me, got to know me and took me in."

"Wow."

"Yeah, trained me up, gave me a chance to make something of myself. Much as I don't like to say it, I am grateful to him."

Toshiro stared at his feet, his mind elsewhere. It was hard to reconcile the man who saved some street kid with the ass who blew him off in his office.

"Speak of…"

Robin's hand flashed out, sending a birdarang into the darkness. Batman caught it with ease, sending Renji an unimpressed glare.

"One day I'm gonna get you Batman."

"What are you doing?"

"Obviously I'm havin a late dinner with my new friend Toshiro."

"Hi Ichigo."

Batman and Robin froze. It took a few seconds (it had been a long night) for Ichigo to recognise who Renji was sitting with. Ichigo sighed.

"Renji, bring him back with you."

Robin spluttered at the use of his name. Toshiro merely rose an eyebrow.

"Not going to deny it?"

"No point."

Renji had a feeling he was missing something. There was a resignation in Ichigo's posture which would have made a novel sight to all the people who thought he was infallible.

"Come on kid."

"Renji huh?"

"Yeah, yeah. How did you find out?"

"I'm a smart guy."

* * *

><p>He was a smart guy. Renji brought him back to the Batcave; he got a rundown of the Bat Family, met Oracle, Juushiro, Yuzu… Karin… Ichigo took him in. A few months later, Ichimaru got Renji. Toshiro had been devastated; Renji was a big brother to him.<p>

Robin found himself in the kitchen. Kon came bounding out to say hi to him, demanding attention and slobbering over the floor.

"Come on boy, let's get you something to eat."

Kon barked enthusiastically. He was generally a dumb dog, but smart enough to recognise when he was about to score some food. Picked out as a puppy by Yuzu in her youth, Kon was an interesting member of the Kurosaki family. He and Ichigo had a love/hate relationship. Kon was trained by Ichigo to be a loyal and obedient protector for his two little sisters. Instead, he turned out to be a bit of a mutt, who lived for treats, pats and trying to hump any pretty lady who came by the mansion, which considering the reputation Ichigo was trying to maintain, was more than a few. Not to say the training wasn't there, Kon just generally ignored it.

Toshiro started to make himself a sandwich. He threw a few scraps to Kon as he worked.

After Renji's death, Ichigo became more and more reckless. Rather than grieve like a healthy person, Ichigo beat Ichimaru within an inch of his life, then threw himself into the Batman. More than a few villains cursed the Joker for setting him off. It started to affect Ichigo's personal life, reports flying around that Ichigo Kurosaki had become a recluse, he rarely fronted to his own parties, let alone other peoples. He made token appearances at Kurosaki Inc., secluding himself in the Batcave.

It took the joint efforts of the bat family to rein him in; constant nagging, begging, screaming, pleading, and crying finally wore him down. He cut back his hours, put more effort into the mask of Playboy Kurosaki and began to grieve in a less self-destructive way.

That's when Toshiro struck.

* * *

><p><strong>One Year Ago.<strong>

Toshiro waited until Ichigo left, before sneaking into Batcave.

Renji's costume and gear were still there, but it wouldn't feel right to use them. Instead, he had appropriated some of Uryuu's old stuff, having already sought him out and received his blessing. He suspected Uryuu was so helpful because he knew it would annoy Ichigo, but that suited him just fine.

Crap! Oracle was still at her station, he'd forgotten about her being on shift. Maybe he could sneak by her…

"Your ear piece is on the table."

Toshiro flinched. So much for that.

"Thanks Orihime"

"Remember, when you're wearing the tights, it's Oracle."

"Right… Oracle."

As Toshiro abandoned all attempts at stealth and just rode the bike out, Orihime just shook her head. The guys always seemed to forget she was Batgirl before the wheelchair. She did do more than just look pretty.

* * *

><p>Batman dodged another car. He didn't have time for this, he was hoping for a quiet night so he could go home early, Yuzu had a recital in the morning, and damned if he was going to miss it.<p>

Bane was in fine form this evening, determined to make good on his promise to 'break the Bat' in his blatant property destruction.

Really, the tossing of the cars was just the foreplay in the routine. They'd banter, Rialgo would get angrier at being unable to hit him, Batman would… OH GOD IS THAT THE BATMOBILE!?

Batman barely dodged his own car being thrown at him. Looks like Bane had upped the ante, juicing himself, that would be how he got passed the built in security. More importantly, that had been his car; this fight just became much more personal.

'_Let's see, explosive batarang to start, once he's stunned, throw smoke bombs and disappear. Bane's fought me before, so he'll probably look among the rooftops to try and catch me, so I'll use that alleyway behind him, I should catch him while he's looking up high. Once that's done, I'll disconnect the tubes to his body and beat on him for wrecking my car._'

That was Ichigo's plan, and he followed it to the letter. It was a good plan too, until it became apparent that Yammy had learnt his lesson from the last time they fought. Those tubes were not budging. Bane grinned beneath his mask, as he rolled his shoulders to get Batman off him.

Unfortunately for Bane, he had tightened the tubes a little too much. When Batman felt the telltale movement in Rialgo's powerful shoulders, he stabilised his footing and tightened his hold on the tubes. Noticing the lack of Bat on the ground, Bane decided to get him off another way. He charged for the closest wall, planning to use it as a makeshift back grinder.

Batman recognised the ploy and adjusted his tactics accordingly. If those tubes weren't going to come out on their own, he'd make them. He quickly sprayed some explosive gel onto the base of the tubes, only a small amount, before jumping off his back and landing in a crouch on the ground.

Bane skidded to a halt as he noticed Batman was no longer on his back.

"BATMAN!"

Ichigo smirked, infuriating Bane. He'd be lying if he didn't admit to enjoying outwitting the idiot. Though outwitting would imply he had a chance to begin with.

_BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!_

"NOOOOO!"

The Venom hissed as the warm liquid hit the cool night air, spraying all over the place like an obscene parody of a sprinkler set. Batman rose and calmly walked over to Bane, who was physically feeling the pain of withdrawals. Batman knew that Bane needed the Venom to live, and was going to help him once he was safely subdued. Ichigo on the other hand was happy to let him suffer a touch longer, Batmobiles were expensive.

"You… You… I will break you…"

Batman observed him clinically, waiting for him to snap up and try to rush him. Cutting Yammy off from his drug would make him less dangerous, but he was still a big man who knew how to use his body. However, in his weakened state, Yammy might be vulnerable to a quick finisher.

Struggling, Bane began to get up, only to be met with the fist of Batman, knocking him out.

Satisfied with this outcome, Ichigo went about restraining him. It wouldn't hold a conscious Bane, but would keep him subdued long enough for KCPD to collect him with their specialised equipment. He put his forefinger to his ear, activating the built-in communicator.

"Oracle. Inform the KCPD to bring a Super-Villain Containment Kit"

"Okay, But you need to get over to the Karakura Central Station. Nnoitra is holding some commuters hostage, I think it may be a bit much for Toshiro's first patrol."

"What?"

* * *

><p>Trapped in a subway car, citizens of Karakura City huddled in fear at the sight of the crazed killer in front of them. He paced up and down the subway car, playing with the deadly looking knife in his hands. Nnoitra Gilga was one of the lesser known hollows who stalked the criminal underground, but the sight of his creepy smile and the little tallies covering his body told them enough.<p>

Don't mess with this guy.

He had walked right into the driver's car and forced him to stop the train and lock the doors. Gilga then proceeded to make a show of who he was going to kill, preaching to them about how meaningless life was, calling them zombies, and promising to free them from their boring lives. It was quite the performance.

To make matters worse, not even Robin could stop him. He's tied up after some poorly thought out attempt to rescue them. He announced himself and charged in, failing to account for Nnoitra taking one of them by knifepoint as a shield and threat. This was the first time in a while since anyone had seen Robin, but the kid looked different to the old ones.

'_Maybe it's his first day?_'

'_Can't believe that, I thought we were saved._'

'_God I hope Batman can save us!_'

In the end, he surrendered, to the relief of the passenger hostage. Gilga decided he would be good bait for the Bat, whom he owed a personal debt.

Despite outside appearances, Toshiro knew what he was doing. Even now, he was working on slipping out of his binds, to take Gilga by surprise. He wasn't stupid, the subway tunnel and car was brightly lit, there was no way he could sneak in, and startling Nnoitra would only endanger the bystanders. Robin knew that he would make the perfect bait for Batman, so reasoned that Nnoitra would also see this and want to use him as a hostage. When he came by to grab him, Robin would lash and take him down. Gilga was a sociopath of the worst kind, who belonged rotting in a cell. Honestly, how do these people keep escaping the Dangai Asylum? Do they have a revolving door there?

"So, you're the new boy wonder..."

Toshiro stared up at him defiantly. The cliché thing to do would be to spit in his face, but that would ruin his plan.

"I think Batman needs to improve his recruiting policy, this was all too easy."

Luckily for Robin, Gilga was too full of himself to question just how easy it was. Out of the corner of his eye, Robin noticed a flash of a shadow. Damn, how did he do it? The outside was so well-lit; there should be no way to sneak up on this subway car!

Nnoitra noticed it as well, so he grabbed for Robin. Time seemed to slow. As he was reaching for him, Robin surprised him by grabbing both of his arms, and twisting his body to push him into the seat. Nnoitra surprised Robin in a display of impressive reflexes by continuing to twist and attempt to swing his knife hand around to stab him in the throat, fighting the grip Robin had on his arm. Luckily, as this was happening, the window opposite them burst inwards as Batman jumped through it, landing on his left foot and using it and momentum to propel him forward. Leading with his right foot, he kicked Gilga in the back of the head, pushing him face first through the window above the seat they were on.

Nnoitra went flying out the window and skidded along the ground, stopping when he hit the wall. Batman was quick to follow, leaping out of the car and dashing over to hogtie Gilga for the KCPD to claim.

Back in the car, Toshiro was taking a moment to contemplate just how close he had come to dying. He'd dealt with some minor hollows earlier, and this had filled him with enough confidence to think he could take on one of the Vasto Lorde class villains. Based on the KCPD's internal ranking system, only the best of the worst could boast that title. Guys like the Joker, Freeze, Riddler, Clayface, Ivy, Bane, Gilga… To think he had the arrogance to walk right up to one of these super-villains and outwit him with such a flimsy plan.

Of course, he would never admit this to anyone, and he quickly realised his career as Robin was on the line. Ichigo will not be impressed. If he had taken down Nnoitra, then maybe he could have convinced Ichigo to keep him on. The fact that Batman had to come rescue him would not help his case.

"Get back to the Batcave."

"But—"

"Now!"

Toshiro knew better than to argue, and left for home.

* * *

><p><strong>Two hours later<strong>

After Batman had finished his patrol, he returned to find Toshiro and Orihime waiting for him. He was already in a foul mood from the loss of his Batmobile, and this latest happening was not helping.

"Ichigo." Orihime began warningly.

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?!"

"I—"

"Leave him alone Ichigo. It won't kill you to have a little help; you can't do this by yourself."

"But—"

"The hell I can't!"

"Ichigo Kurosaki—"

"He—"

"Nearly killed you—"

"It wasn't a terrible plan Ichigo, if Uryuu had been the one to—"

"Uryuu has years of experience fighting crime and knows better than to run in halfcocked with some stupid plan to get the jump on Gilga, WHO IS A VASTO LORDE CRIMINAL, BY THE WAY!"

"Ichi—"

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to see about ordering some parts for a new Batmobile."

With that said, Ichigo stalked off to go brood in a corner, rather than admit to the genuine fear he felt when he saw Toshiro being attacked by the super villain.

Back with Orihime and Toshiro, they stood there quietly for a few moments, before Orihime spoke up.

"I told you waiting for backup would be a good idea."

"He wouldn't have let me do anything if I waited."

"Even so…"

"I should go…"

"I'll talk to him Shiro, Batman needs a Robin, even if he doesn't want to admit it."

* * *

><p><strong>Present Day<strong>

After a few days, Orihime wore Ichigo down, and he began training Toshiro in the finer aspects of crime fighting and being a member of the Bat Family. One month later, Toshiro was on his first recognised patrol with Batman, making his official début as Robin, rather than the cameo he made against Gilga.

Finishing his sandwich, he decided he should do that quick search for Oracle, then head to bed. It was a school night after all, and Juushiro would be in early to get him ready to leave with Karin and Yuzu.

* * *

><p><strong>So there. Next chapter will be a day in the life of Ichigo with a, forgive the pun, "super" surprise visit.<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.**

* * *

><p><strong>Dangai Asylum, the next morning.<strong>

"Get Up! Yer have a visitor clown."

Gin Ichimaru, aka the Joker, sat bolt upright. He whipped his head around to an unnatural degree and smiled creepily at the guard before laughing in his special way.

"Oh goody, a friend! And on my first day back too… You prison staff sure know how to make a guy feel special!"

"Look, just get off ya bed freak and putcha hands forward, you know the drill."

"Oh, of course! I'm in prison again. Can't just go for a stroll to the shops can I?" Joker slapped his head at his apparent forgetfulness.

"Yeah, whatever, just don't try nuthin."

Gin pouted as Security Officer Iba locked him into his handcuffs.

"Oh, I'm hurt you think I would try to escape my super-secret-reserved cell. That sort of thing could get you in trouble. I mean, what sort of guard are you if you have nothing to… well… guard?"

"Keep talkin' Ichimaru, we'll see how funny ya are with a broken jaw."

"Oh, I'm hilarious, trust me."

"Get moving!"

* * *

><p><strong>On the other Side of Karakura.<strong>

_Bzzzt Bzzzt Bzzzt_

Ichigo reached over blindly and turned off his alarm. He glanced over at the clock.

It was ten in the morning.

One of the few perks of being an irresponsible multi-billionaire was nobody expected him to show up on time to work. If he showed up to work at all; though he did occasionally have to push some paper.

'_Price of being the boss_' he mused.

Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he was grateful that the night before wasn't too strenuous. Some mornings/afternoons, he would just lie in discomfort and consider skipping the day before Juushiro would bustle in and shoo him out of bed.

Speak of the devil…

"Good morning Ichigo!"

Dressed in the casual suit he favoured, Juushiro Ukitake beamed at his charge. Ichigo saw his smile and raised him a Bat-glare.

"Do you really have to be so loud?"

"How else am I to get your attention? Now get up, Yuzu left you some bacon and eggs. I took the liberty of warming them in the oven. I recommend you have a shower first, if you don't mind me saying so."

With that said, Juushiro took his leave and Ichigo made his way over to the ensuite. One quick shower later, he was picking out his suit for the day.

'_Hmmm, I think… The blue shirt with black tie._'

Dressed, Ichigo made his way down to the kitchen. By now, Yuzu, Karin and Toshiro had left for school. Toshiro had left his findings from the night before on the table for Batman to peruse. Uryuu was currently amusing himself by reading through them while Orihime giggled over the comics in the newspaper.

"Ichigo."

"Uryuu."

"Good morning Ichigo!"

"Good morning Orihime."

With his back turned to them, Ichigo absently poured himself a cup of coffee on the counter and smiled softly to himself. It was almost like the old days, back when Orihime had started as Batgirl and would sometimes stay the night. The three of them would chat over the table while Juushiro served them coffee. On weekends, the twins would join them for late breakfast, Orihime worrying over Juushiro's health, Karin fussing about being late for soccer and Yuzu pestering Uryuu for tips on sewing.

The sound of Orihime wheeling over in her chair broke Ichigo out of his reverie.

Almost like the old days.

"Ichigo, I received confirmation this morning from Dangai. Ichimaru has been safely locked up."

"For now…" Uryuu darkly muttered.

"Uryuu…"

"What? Hime, it's only a matter of time before he breaks out again. You know it, I know it. Ichigo knows it!"

"And Ichigo will stop him if he does." Ichigo barked in his Bat-voice.

Glaring at him over the lip of his mug, Batman had cut into the discussion, stopping it before it could really start. Nightwing glared back, not the least bit intimidated.

Ichigo took a slow slip, and Uryuu began twirling a butter knife in his fingers, neither of them willing to break eye contact.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, it was all Orihime could do to not laugh at how silly Ichigo looked with Yuzu's bright pink 'Hey Chappy' mug in his hand.

* * *

><p>"So, any hints on who wants to see little 'ole me so early into my state funded staycation?"<p>

"Yer lawyer wants to see ya."

"Gosh darn it Iba! I said a hint! I didn't actually want to know, you've ruined the game!"

"I don't get paid enough for this."

"Oh I hear ya pal. Those penny pinchers in city hall, they don't know how hard it is, trying to make an honest living… Ok, so neither do I, but still…"

"Do you ever shut it?"

"Tetsuzaemon, I'm hurt. I thought we were friends. I always look forward to our playful banter whenever the Bat-Express drops me off. Maybe I should look elsewhere for friendship."

"You do that."

"Why I'm sure your nephew Hiro would be delighted to trade jokes with me. He's at that age where he still finds clowns funny right? I get on so great with kids —"

_WHAM!_

Iba pushed Joker up against the wall, and punched him in the gut, doubling him over.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MY NEPHEW?"

Laughing, Gin knew he had hit a nerve; Iba's rage betrayed just a hint of fear. Dropping his jovial act, the Joker's voice became quite sinister.

"Not much, just the basics, you know. Aged seven, Hiro Iba goes to Karakura East, bright boy, though math isn't his strong suit is it? He likes the colour red, thinks girls are gross, and loves playing at the park down the road from the house where he lives with his mother. Your sister, the lovely Miss Haruka Iba."

"I… You…"

"It must be so hard for a single mother in this time of economic uncertainty, never knowing if her job at the plant will be safe. She could be fired anytime. Might be a blessing in disguise though, not the best hours there, which is why you try to help her out so much right? Little Hiro really looks up to you, it's important for a young boy to have a positive male role model in his life. Lord knows he's not getting that with his real dad, but what can you expect from one of Penguin's goons? Barragan doesn't exactly attract the most morally responsible crowd…"

"How could you possibly—"

"Know all this? Oh it was quite easy, actually. Like I said, we spend so much time together; I just wanted to know a bit more about you. Because we're friends! And you know what friends do for each other, Security Officer Iba? They do each other favours!"

"Favours?"

"Yeppers. They do solids, they have each other's backs. Now come on! We should really keep moving, my lawyer hates to be kept waiting."

* * *

><p>The sleek, black, Lamborghini Murcielago effortlessly weaved its way through the traffic as Ichigo navigated Downtown Karakura. One of the other perks of coming in late was he generally only dealt with the tail end of the morning rush and missed most congestion.<p>

Giving the road only as much attention as necessary, Ichigo mentally planned his day. No matter how hard he tried to distract himself with budget meetings and stock figures in the front of his mind, the back was still mulling over the events of the night before. Catwoman was back, he would have to drop by Yoruichi's tonight.

More pressingly though, why did Joker call him out like that? He had to have known Batman would take him down. Did he want to be in Dangai? Last time that had happened, he just broke in. The guards came by one morning and found him just sitting in his cell, like he belonged there, which technically he did, as there were still years on the other sentences he had skipped out on.

Of course, the problem with figuring out Joker's motives was that he often didn't have any. So it's entirely possible he spontaneously decided to challenge Batman. It would explain the apparent lack of planning in his work. Past experience told Ichigo this was unlikely. But what was his goal here? What is he trying to do?

Before he knew it, Ichigo had arrived at Kurosaki Tower. Driving into his usual spot, he exited his car and made his way over to the elevator, exchanging pleasantries with the security guard who escorted him to his office.

* * *

><p>"Kaname! How are you! Sorry I took so long, I hope they at least gave you a magazine or something… Oh wait! Haahaha!"<p>

"You have twenty minutes Mr Tousen."

"Thank you. Sit down Mr Ichimaru we have a lot to discuss."

A visibly shaken Iba left the room. With all the swagger he could muster in chains, Joker casually arranged himself on the chair. He then began to amuse himself by pulling faces at the blind man, while Tousen droned on about his defence for his upcoming court case.

"You can drop the act Sosuke; I don't think they're listening anymore."

'Kaname Tousen' sighed, then flashed a smirk and slipped into his real voice.

"Ok Gin, what gave me away?"

"Tousen always calls me on it when I'm making faces at him."

Clayface, the man formerly known as Sosuke Aizen, was an Oscar-winning actor worthy of his success and international acclaim. Women wanted him, men wanted to be him. He dominated the silver screen with an amazing depth and breadth of characters. From war heroes to slapstick comedians, suave spies to bumbling sidekicks, he was the consummate professional and ultimate actor. The problem was he knew it.

His ego would not allow for the idea of growing older, losing his good looks and starring roles. The first time he lost a role to a younger actor, he refused to leave his trailer for a week. The first time he was asked to move, because he was blocking the view of 'the real stars' on the red carpet, he attacked the paparazzo who said it, putting him in the hospital. When the police arrived to arrest him on assault charges, he ran. Sosuke took a liking to an abandoned beauty cream factory, and put the production line to use, creating the hogyoku anti-aging cream. Using his skills as an actor, Aizen had the world fooled into thinking he was the harmless businessman/scientist Takeru Hirako, long-lost son of beauty product tycoon/recluse Shinji Hirako.

For almost two years, the people of Karakura accepted him and the women loved him for his miraculous Hogyoku cream. It all came crashing down when Kurosaki Inc. sued him.

The Hogyoku cream was derived from a formula developed by Kurosaki Inc. scientist Kisuke Urahara. Aizen had snuck in and stolen it from his files, and it had taken Urahara two years to notice that one of his old projects was missing. The lawsuit was enough to draw out Shinji Hirako who re-joined the world and exposed Aizen as a fraud.

Aizen didn't take this very well and barricaded himself into the factory. Hirako decided he would take over production and profits of the Hogyoku cream by selling his company to Kurosaki Inc. after meeting with billionaire Ichigo Kurosaki. Unable to accept the reality of his situation, Aizen chose to end his own life by jumping into a boiling vat of his Hogyoku cream. This would have unforeseen consequences, as the villain Clayface emerged from the tub. Marvelling at his new power, Aizen tried to exact vengeance on those who wronged him, only to be stopped by Batman, but that's a story for another day.

Back in the present, Aizen was staring blankly ahead, as though he really was blind like the man he was pretending to be, but Gin wasn't fooled, he knew the man was simmering under the mask of placidity.

"Gin, we had a plan."

"I know, I know, but I got booorreedd, you were taking too long."

"Well thanks to your theatrics, my plan has been set back a few days now."

"It's not like you need me to get one lawyer off your back."

"I did though Gin, you were supposed to kidnap Jeagerjaques quietly, now I have to arrange something else."

"Oh, don't pretend you don't have a backup plan."

"I do, actually, and since you're here, you can carry it out."

The Joker smiled evily.

"Do tell…"

* * *

><p><strong>Kurosaki Tower.<strong>

Sitting on his comfy chair, Ichigo reviewed the reports on his desk. Luckily for the company, he was somewhat of a financial genius. His analytical mind was capable of grasping trends and recognising opportunities in the business world, helping to keep Kurosaki Inc. profitable. As long as he made the company money, the board would keep off his back, which made it easier to carry out his extra-curricular activities. He was halfway through his morning workload when his intercom started blinking.

_Beep Beep_

"Yes Lisa?"

"A Mr Son is here to see you."

"Send him in."

Ah yes, he'd almost forgotten, Gohan wanted to see him this morning. No doubt the Man of Steel wanted to pester him further about joining up with the other superheroes running around the world.

It wasn't that he didn't like the others heroes so much as he felt that Karakura still needed most of his attention. Trying to solve the world's problems would leave his city unprotected, and that's unacceptable.

"Good morning Ichigo."

In walked Superman, arguably the world's greatest hero. Today however, he was in the guise of Gohan Son, mild-mannered reporter for the Orange Star, premier newspaper of the sprawling metropolis known as Hercule City.

Ichigo took a moment to observe his friend, marvelling at the completeness of his disguise. A cheap pair of glasses to frame his face, a suit two sizes too big to help hide his considerable muscle, and an awkward, self-conscious posture made him somehow blend into the crowd. In his 'other job', Superman stood tall and proud as a symbol for truth and justice in red and blue tights.

An alien from the now destroyed planet Vegeta, Gohan possessed the powers of super strength, invulnerability, flight, super speed, energy manipulation and enhanced senses. Gohan had once told him that he called himself Saiyaman in his early days, a homage to his people. However, Videl Satan, the woman who broke the story on him, had named him 'Superman' and the title stuck.

The world had been wary of him at first, but time and time again, Superman proved himself and had become the favourite of the people. The world feared Batman, and that suited Ichigo just fine, but Superman inspired them and had become an icon.

"Gohan, I had almost forgotten you were coming, excuse the mess, it's been a bit hectic here"

Gohan laughed and rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"That's alright, you're an important guy, and you must get busy. So, how goes… you know, your other job?"

Ichigo levelled an intense Bat-glare in his direction. It was still a sore point that Gohan knew who he was. When they first met, it was because an alien survivor from Gohan's world had landed in Karakura and decided to make a nuisance of himself. Much to his chagrin, Batman had not been a physical match for Prince Vegeta and his General Nappa, but with the help of Superman, they were able to trap them in the Dead Zone, a prison in another dimension.

Being the first time he had met him, Batman wasn't aware of the full range of powers they possessed, so he didn't know he would need a lead-lined mask to keep his identity safe. By now of course it was too late, and Superman had at least offered him his identity in return.

"What do you want Gohan?"

"Weeelll…."

"No."

"But—"

"No."

"Come on, think of all the good we could do with co-ordinated responses to the world's problems."

"No."

"Flash and Lantern are interested."

"Uzumaki is an idiot who doesn't have the attention span for something like this and Ikari is too busy chasing tail when he isn't off in space being what essentially boils down to a galactic beat cop."

"Don't you think you're being a bit harsh?"

"No. And speaking of Ikari, one of us needs to have a word with his father about the NERV Project."

Gohan became serious and spoke in his 'Super-voice.'

"Yes, one of us does. Who honestly thinks giant war robots can do anything positive for humanity. It's like a bad plot from a cartoon. Unfortunately, the government seems to be on board with his proposal."

"Only because they know you will clean it up if one of them gets out of control again."

"General Tao is really starting to annoy me. I don't suppose you would be willing to dig up some dirt on him?"

"I'll make a note, but proving anything could be difficult. Men like that don't get promoted because they can't cover their tracks."

General Tao had been one of the loudest voices to speak out against Superman when he first arrived on the scene. Even today, with the support of the people of the world, Tao still considers him a threat and often supports dangerous projects from people like Gendo Ikari and Superman's greatest nemesis, Dr Gero (self-proclaimed smartest man in the world).

Ichigo sighed. Sometimes, it seemed like that for every hero in a costume out there, there was a heap of bad people trying to outdo them. Maybe there was something to Gohan's suggestion of teaming up more often. Some sort of league of heroes to represent the interests of justice around the globe.

For now though, he had enough problems in his own backyard.

Gohan stiffened, and then cocked his head slightly, as though to better focus his hearing.

"Sounds like Videl is getting impatient waiting for me."

Ichigo's eyebrow rose and he smirked at Gohan.

"You brought her with you?"

"Yeah, she had business in Karakura too; it made sense to come together."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it was kind of neat to travel the normal way for once, instead of flying myself– don't look at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like there's more to this then a friendly business trip."

"Friendly business trip… How cliché."

Most people would never pick it, but Batman actually had a sense of humour. It was very dry and only came out around some people. Unfortunately for Gohan, he was one of those people.

"Don't you start 'Mr Playboy'. I only brought Videl because she's still a little suspicious of me and I don't want her looking at me too closely. You know I have enemies, and Videl can be so reckless. I need to keep an eye on her, but not in that way, not that I'm saying she isn't pretty, or in any way an unappealing woman… Oh stuff it!"

Also unfortunately for Gohan, Ichigo was a master at reading body language, so he knew when Gohan's voice went up a bit and he started rambling and scratching the back of his head, he had him.

"Stuff it? Gee Gohan, don't hurt my feelings. Look, there's a very intimate café down the street, why don't you take her there for lunch, I'm sure it will calm her down. Give the manager my card and compliments; you should get a discount."

Gohan stared at him for a moment, but decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"I think I will thanks."

Ichigo got up from his desk and walked around to Gohan, grasping his hand and slipping his card into it.

"You have my number, I have yours."

"Sure, have a nice day Ichigo."

Gohan went out the door with one final wave to his friend, and Ichigo turned around and went back to his desk.

* * *

><p>"So are we clear on what is expected of you?"<p>

"Oooohhh, of course."

"Good. Remember, discretion is key here, keep the… frivolities, to a minimum."

Joker favoured Clayface with a deadpan stare. Aizen sighed.

"I said minimum."

The door opens behind Ichimaru, and a guard, (not Iba, who went home 'sick') comes in.

"Time's up Mr Tousen."

"Of course, Mr Ichimaru, good day."

Aizen slipped effortlessly back into his disguise and rose from the table, grabbing his cane and feeling his way out. Ichimaru was cuffed again and escorted back to his cell, a sick smile alighting his face.

* * *

><p>Ichigo stretched his arms over his head, bored with the paperwork in front of him. Deciding to take a break from his day job, he turned his attention to his night job. Opening the encrypted link to the Batcave Computer, he opened and began reviewing the plans for an improvement to the Batmobile's engine. Ichigo had been messing around with them since Kisuke had sent him an article on optimising engine efficiency that he thought might have 'interested' him.<p>

Engrossed in the plans, time flew by, and before he knew it, it was 2pm and he was hungry. Ichigo decided that rather than ordering in, he would stretch his legs, and stop by the café he mentioned to Gohan. He grabbed his wallet and phone, and made his way out.

"Lisa, I'm heading out for lunch, would you like to join me?"

"Thank you for the offer Mr Kurosaki, but I have work to catch up on and I've already eaten."

"Sure, I'll be back in half an hour or so then."

* * *

><p><strong>Downtown Karakura.<strong>

'Kaname Tousen' walked through the door into the office, and faced himself sitting at the desk. Aizen allowed his transformation to drop and exchanged it with his original look.

"I take it all went well."

"Yes, thank you for asking Kaname, Gin has business in Dangai, don't strain yourself with his defence."

"Understood… What about the Batman? You must admit, he does make a habit of ruining our plans."

"He is of no concern. I have arranged a distraction for the next few days. This should grant us ample time to make the necessary arrangements. He will follow the plan I lay out for him, or he will die. Either option is fine with me."

Aizen moved across the room and sat in his chair. He rested his jaw on his hand and looked contemplatively out the window.

* * *

><p><strong>Café Down the Street.<strong>

Ichigo sipped on his coffee while he waited for his steak. Perusing his newspaper, he stopped on the story about the Joker from last night. Hisagi had written a 'man on the inside' story, with an account of his terror at being at the mercy of Joker. It started with a background on why the event was being held and the guests who attended, with a note about the absence of Ichigo Kurosaki. Damn, won't be able to skip the next charity event without a really good reason. The story continues, recounting how the Joker took hostages and the Batman saved them.

The story did a good job of exaggerating his role in stopping the hollows, describing him as a living shadow and whirlwind of destruction. It was a little much, but if it added to his legend, he wouldn't complain.

"Here's your lunch Mr Kurosaki."

"Ah, thank you Nel."

Ichigo flashed his most charming smile and was rewarded with a blush as she rushed away. The teal haired waitress had a crush on Ichigo, which he was careful to not encourage beyond friendly flirtation. Nel was a nice girl, he refused to use her like those high society airheads, nor would he want to drag her into the mess that was his personal life.

As Ichigo was about to take his first bite of lunch, a voice from behind interrupted him.

"You know I don't like sharing, Beloved."

As soon as she said that first word, Ichigo recognised her voice. Batman stiffened in his seat, taking in his surroundings, evaluating escape routes, spotting her two guards hiding among the innocent bystanders and recognising angles of attack should they become necessary. Ideally though, none of these would be necessary and he could maintain the integrity of his disguise.

All of this took less than a few seconds for Ichigo to process. He flicked his eyes over to the source of the voice, Rukia Kuchiki, dressed in a smart white blazer and skirt with a black blouse. An unusual choice for someone trained in the use of shadows, same as him.

'_Considering how visible she is, maybe she just wants to talk._'

"Oh? Does my flirting with other women bother you?"

"Flirting? You mean being a manwhore. Just to protect your precious identity."

"Mentioning said identity out loud in public tends to be counter-productive to protecting it."

Rukia smiled indulgently at him. She enjoyed their verbal sparring and knew he did too.

Ichigo for his part was studying her closely looking for any slip of her body language to act as an indicator of what she was thinking. As always, Rukia's face gave nothing away she didn't want to. Studying her, he noticed her hair was shorter than the last time he saw her.

"Haircut?"

"Yes, thank you for noticing."

They stared each other down for another minute, before Ichigo went back to his lunch.

"So what brings you to Karakura?"

Rukia reached over to his plate and stole a chip before he could do anything about it.

"Business."

"Business?"

"Yes. I-"

"Excuse me, Mr Kurosaki?"

"Yes? Oh, Mr Hisagi. It's funny, I was just reading your article before, and I hope you're ok."

"I'm fine, thank you for asking. Sorry to interrupt your lunch, but I was walking by, so I thought I'd ask you in person for an interview about your latest company policy on your exports—"

"It's really simple, you see—"

While the two men talked business, Rukia smiled placidly for the reporter's benefit should he look over. While she did this, she was making hand signals behind her back, instructing one of her guards to come over and flirt with the reporter to distract him away from the table. And being an efficient woman, she took the chance to fluster Ichigo by rubbing her foot up and down his calf; the twitch in his eye told her she was successful. Her attention was brought back to the conversation when she heard herself being referred to.

"So, Mr Kurosaki, who's the lovely lady?"

Before Ichigo could answer, Rukia chimed in with her sugary-sweet fake voice.

"His girlfriend."

Ichigo whipped his head around and stared at her. Rukia basked in his shock and slipt him a look. Ichigo returned her look with a deadpan stare.

_Seriously?_

_Seriously_.

The lapse in composure was missed by Hisagi, whose reporter instinct sensed a story. Rukia's trouble instinct also sensed an opportunity. She sent a subtle hand signal to her guard, telling her to wait.

"His girlfriend… Care to comment on the string of women Mr Kurosaki has been seen entertaining in the Karakura nightlife?"

Rukia raised her hand to her mouth in pretend surprise.

"Oh my, a whole string?"

"What are you doing?"

Ichigo questioned her out loud, but knew it was pointless. For some reason or other, he was the only person in the world who seemed to be able to see through her acting.

"What am I doing? You've been running around on me, and you have the nerve to ask me what I'm doing?"

"Hisagi, before you write any of this down, I would remind you who owns the majority share in your newspaper. This woman is not my girlfriend."

"Right, thank you for answering my questions on your export policy. Have a good afternoon."

With that, Hisagi left and Ichigo turned to glare at his 'girlfriend.'

"Did you enjoy that?"

"I enjoyed watching you throw your power around. It was very manly."

"Again, you tease me. I put years into crafting my image, don't be so casual about ruining it!"

"Crafting your image? You mean you do this kind of thing on purpose? In that case why wouldn't you want to be seen with a beautiful young woman like me?"

"How can we be seen together if you're all the way down there?"

_WHAM!_

Rukia slammed Ichigo's head onto the table, narrowly missing his lunch. She was the only person in the world who could get him so riled up he let his guard down enough to be susceptible to such an attack.

"Did you just call me short, Strawberry?"

"_Tch_. It means One Who Protects! I've told you a million times!" Ichigo retorted hotly.

Rukia glared at him, before commenting archly.

"A lady is not short, she is petite, and you would do well to remember that."

"Yeah, yeah. Now why are you here, other than to torment me and trick people into thinking we're a couple."

Rukia reached over and laid her hand on top of his.

"Come now Beloved, the only reason we aren't husband and wife is your stubbornness."

Ichigo pulled his hand away.

"It's not just my stubbornness. You're the one who won't leave your father."

"Ichigo…"

"I care for you Rukia, but I refuse to live my life following Byakuya's philosophy. He's wrong; there are better ways to save the world."

"Fool, you two are always forcing me to choose a side, why can't I have both?"

"You could have me. Renounce him, right now and I will be as much yours as you would be mine. I'll call Hisagi and tell him he can run a story on the woman who tamed Ichigo Kurosaki."

Rukia looked down into her lap. As wonderful as that sounded…

"I can't Ichigo."

"Can't or won't?"

"Either?" she replied weakly.

Ichigo sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked away for a moment, and when he turned again, Rukia knew she was talking to the Batman.

"What are you really doing here Kuchiki?"

"I came to warn you. I've been sent ahead to prepare for his arrival."

Batman's eyes narrowed.

"My father is coming tomorrow night Ichigo. I believe he intends to force the issue."

"Issue?"

"Concerning you taking over as his heir."

"I haven't changed my mind."

"I know and so does he. My sources tell me he's looking to replace you. But before he can acknowledge someone new, they must first beat the incumbent."

"Me."

"Yes."

"Can't I just let this new guy have it?"

In a rare display of vulnerability, Rukia hugged herself with one arm and looked away.

"Do I mean so little to you?"

Ichigo knew what he said was insensitive as soon as he said it. But Batman drew a line in the sand, and he refused to cross it. So instead he sat in the uncomfortable silence before deciding to change the subject.

"What are your plans tonight?"

"Dinner at your place. I already called ahead; Yuzu is very excited to see me."

Ichigo twitched at her presumption. For some reason, Rukia was the only woman Ichigo had brought home that Juushiro, Yuzu and Karin had ever approved of. They had no idea how Ichigo had met her, or that she was the daughter of one of the most powerful crime lords to ever exist.

Whenever Rukia felt like visiting, they welcomed her with open arms, and nagged Ichigo about when he would finally make her their big sister in truth. Uryuu, Orihime and Toshiro knew their history, and were generally less than welcoming which often led to tension in the household. But for a night with her, Ichigo decided he could be selfish, even if they still have to go back to being enemies in the morning.

"Fine. I guess you can use the guest room in the east wing."

"What? That room is so small it's practically a closet. We both know I'll end up in your room anyway."

Images of the last time they 'shared' a room went through Ichigo's mind and he discreetly wiped his nose. An action that didn't go unnoticed by Rukia.

"It's been fun Ichigo, but I do have preparations to make."

Ichigo Bat-glared her, he knew what that meant. Rukia got up and walked around to his side. She bent down and kissed him on the cheek, like the girlfriend she pretended to be earlier.

"See you tonight Beloved."

With that, Rukia left him at his table. Ichigo finally got back to his lunch which had gotten cold. Nel came over and she looked… displeased.

"Would you like me to warm that up for you?"

"Please."

Ichigo smiled for her, but she wasn't having it. Nel took his plate with a huff, and stalked off.

'_Better leave a big tip._' He mused.

* * *

><p><strong>Points if you can guess what was on TV while I wrote the conversation between Ichigo and Rukia. Sorry if Rukia's character seemed off, I was trying to balance her banter with Ichigo and Talia's love for Batman.<br>**

**Also, I would be open to suggestions for a character to be Wonder Woman. To keep with the style of the other heroes, she would need to be a female protagonist from an anime that's reasonably popular and hasn't been covered yet. I couldn't think of anyone who fit the bill off the top of my head, and it's not crucial to the story, so I decided Gohan wouldn't mention her. It may never come up again, but the nerd in me wants to complete the set for an anime Justice League.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi, been awhile for those who read this regularly, and thank you to those people.**

**For reference, if you want to know what Uryuu Nightwing looks like, google image search 'Arkham City Nightwing' and for what I'm imagining Szayelaporro Riddler looks like, google images for 'The Batman Riddler,' that costume, but with pink hair.**

**I hope nobody is reading this chapter for action, as it kind of wades through some plot and back-story. I sort of really go into the back-stories of some of the characters, but it helps flesh out the universe I'm building while I try to keep it consistent. I promise the next chapter will have more action. **

**I'll also remind everyone that I'm taking bits of canon from different versions/portrayals of Batman and fusing it with bits of Bleach to make my own story.**

**I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.**

* * *

><p><strong>The Batcave.<strong>

Orihime sat at the Batcave Computer, reviewing some Riddler case files Batman had stored in his database. News had just reached her that Granz had escaped from Dangai Asylum. Sadly, high profile criminal's escaping wasn't unusual. What worried her was the apparent lack of riddles or challenges in his cell. The first time Granz broke himself out, he left a riddle for Batman to solve. This time, he just left, like he was in a rush or something.

Szayelaporro Granz, better known as the Riddler, was considered by the public to be one of the less dangerous Vasto Lorde, but the KCPD and Batman took him very seriously. They understood that his love of riddles and challenges could be just as dangerous a gimmick as Joker's clowning or Scarecrow's scarecrow costume.

During one of their clashes, Riddler had revealed to Batman where he developed his obsession with puzzles. As a child, he won a school contest for guessing the answer to a riddle none of his classmates could. As a prize, he received a book of riddles and the praise of his teachers and peers. He was so gratified by the attention; he spent the next few days mastering the riddle book so he could keep impressing the school with his talent.

It worked for a few weeks, but as children often do, they soon moved onto the new fad and the kids weren't impressed by riddles anymore. Szayelaporro moved with the times, but he never forgot how special the riddles made him feel, how being cleverer than his friends made him feel good about himself. After that, he had a mostly normal childhood, no tragedy marring him towards a life of crime; he lived his life with riddles as his hobby. But in his senior years, the stress of exams began to get to him, so he turned to riddles to cope. He delved so deeply, he flunked his exams, ruining his plans for the future.

This was unacceptable to Szayelaporro, so he broke into the school records and altered his grades before they could be recorded permanently. It worked and he got away with near perfect scores. He got into the prestigious Karakura State University on an academic scholarship and had the world at his feet. The way Granz saw it, he deserved the grades that reflected his genius, and he continued to feel that way, right up until he was found out by a routine academic audit of his grades. He was booted out of his scholarship and made infamous by a newspaper story on how he did it.

Branded a cheat by the public at large, Granz fell again into riddles to feel better about himself. One day, he was watching the news when he saw a report on a fight between Batman and Joker. Granz was inspired by the level of attention Joker's antics commanded. It reminded him of the time he spent as a child when he was the talk of the school. He gathered what little savings he had and spent them on designing an outlandish costume. His first crime as the Riddler was fairly humble, he robbed a convenience store. From there, his crimes rose in complexity until he finally had the attention of KCPD. After he had committed enough minor crimes, Riddler decided it was time to move up in the world, and what better way to do that than by getting revenge on KSU.

He staged an elaborate game of riddles and traps, all designed to force the staff and students to acknowledge his intellectual superiority. The police couldn't stop him, the staff were baffled by his genius and everything was going wonderfully until the Batman arrived.

At first it was fine, Granz knew that something as high profile as holding a university hostage would attract his attention. He even looked forward to matching wits with the Dark Knight. So when Batman solved the first few riddles and released some students, he wasn't worried. A few riddles later and Riddler had to remind himself that it wouldn't be any fun if it was easy. As the night went on and Batman kept winning, he slowly became more and more desperate. He finally abandoned all pretence of riddles and took his last hostage, the academic auditor who busted him, and waited for Batman.

Riddler stood there with a gun to the auditor's head, thinking he'd won, Batman would never be able to get to him without risking harm to the hostage. Then he saw him, standing there in the shadows. He appeared so suddenly, Riddler almost didn't notice him. He just stood there, staring. Riddler tried taunting him, daring him to make a move, but he didn't. Granz got so frustrated by his stare, he shot at Batman. The real Batman appeared behind Riddler and grabbed his gun, subduing him. On his way out, Riddler saw the mannequin Batman had dressed as himself to use as a decoy. And he laughed. He laughed liked a maniac as he realised he lost. Szayelaporro Granz knew that it wasn't the end, but the beginning, the beginning of a chess game between the two geniuses of Karakura City.

Back in the present, Orihime could hear the staccato rhythm of Uryuu training with his escrima sticks on the training platform. Turning around, she watched him train for a few minutes. She understood his dedication. Practice makes perfect and anything short of perfect could have deadly consequences when dealing with the criminal element of any society.

Nightwing had planned to return to Bounthaven earlier, but the news that Riddler was loose had prompted him to stay. The second time Batman and Riddler had tangled, the Vasto Lorde class criminal had succeeded in trapping Batman. Tied up and minutes from death by explosion, the thing that saved Ichigo's life was Robin bursting into the bunker after solving one of Granz's riddles. Since then, the Riddler has harboured a passionate hatred towards Robin for interfering in the game he had with Batman.

Orihime paused in her work to muse on that. It's amazing how many super-villains feel what they do with Batman was their own personal game/vendetta, like they're the only ones doing it. It's probably a good thing they feel that way though, if they were to ever put aside their differences and work together…

'_Yeah, like that will ever happen._'

Working together would mean playing nice and putting aside their egos for the good of the team. That's what teamwork is, working with others as your equals. Henchmen, minions and gang members don't really count as teams, because they work for the super-villains. By their very natures, the Vasto Lorde class criminals cannot help but be selfish and want to further their own agenda's. They're so used to being in-charge they get angry when people contradict them.

Case-in-point, the closest the villains have ever come to teaming up was when Penguin and Scarecrow got together to take on Batman. Mayuri Kurotsuchi was low on funds for his fear experiments, so he approached Baraggan Louisenbairn looking for money. Baraggan planned to steal the formula once the research was done and Scarecrow was always going to leave with the money before that could happen. Just as they were about to double-cross each other, Batman arrived on the scene to stop them. He'd gotten wind of the meeting, and wanted to discourage the villains from any idea of working together. Realising the danger they were in, Scarecrow and Penguin put aside their differences long enough to actually trap Batman in a backroom at Penguin's hideout.

That's where the problem started. Scarecrow wanted to dose Batman with a lethal amount of his fear gas and drive him to insanity before he died. Penguin was more interested in a personal touch and wanted to beat him to death after unmasking him. Of course, while they argued, Ichigo quietly escaped the room. Once Kurotsuchi noticed this, the arguments intensified as they blamed each other for Batman getting away. Of course, Batman hadn't left yet. He'd hung around watching in bemusement as they competed over who despised the other more and who would get the better revenge on the other person. Ichigo despised them both equally, so he solved the argument by beating them equally.

It put Scarecrow out of commission for a while, but getting charges to stick to Penguin was always difficult. Louisenbairn had deep pockets and could afford the best lawyers. It didn't help that witnesses frequently had changes of heart after a new car or some other meaningless luxury item would turn up at their place, courtesy of Louisenbairn's company, who were deeply sorry for any misunderstanding between them and their boss. Plus the nonverbal implication of 'we know where you live' tended to convince them to not look a gift horse in the mouth.

To his credit, Penguin wasn't stupid, he knew that killing them wouldn't necessarily make his problems go away, plus he saw bribing them as a noble act of penance on his part, worthy of a king. The Louisenbairn's are an old family, entrepreneurs who opened the very first restaurant in Karakura, back when the city was founded. Over the years, they invested and bought intelligently until they owned the nightlife in Karakura. You couldn't book a table without seeing the distinctive penguin family crest somewhere in the building. The success went to their heads, and bred generations of cruel and arrogant men, who began to see themselves as the kings of Karakura and would do anything to protect their positions.

It all came tumbling down when Ichigo's grandfather stood up to them on behalf of an employee whose wife was being harassed by a Louisenbairn goon. The police investigation was backed by an honest police captain who wasn't swayed by bribes and uncovered the mafia-like business practices of the family. Their reputation and business holdings took a hit while the legal process was carried out. People stopped coming to their hotels and bars. Staff they had trained to be the best were poached by other restaurants or implicated in illegal activities and imprisoned. What hurt them the most was the loss of prestige and respect. The kings had been dethroned.

This of course led to the feud between the Kurosaki and Louisenbairn families. Their ancestors had never liked each other, but the actions of Ichgo's grandfather towards Baraggan's father had turned the dislike to hatred. This is why Ichigo hated Baraggan as both Billionaire and Bat, he and Penguin were born to be enemies.

Orihime snapped back to reality when she heard Uryuu curse behind her. She turned and saw the broken training dummy on the ground.

"Maybe that's a sign you should take a break?"

* * *

><p><strong>Karakura Academy.<strong>

"SHOTGUUUNN!"

Ichigo grimaced slightly at the high pitched squeal of his little sister hitting his ears. Yuzu raced for the front seat and looked quite pleased with herself for scoring a prime spot next to her big brother.

"Geez, calm down Yuzu." Karin grumbled as she slid into the seat behind Ichigo, Toshiro grabbing the other one. "It doesn't matter where you sit, we all get home at the same time."

Ichigo had decided to finish work early so he could pick up his sisters and Toshiro. While all three of them were capable of driving themselves, Ichigo felt better if he or Juushiro could drop them off and pick them up. The Kurosaki's were a high profile family, so he felt his protectiveness was justified.

Sadly, while the Lamborghini was fun to drive, it only had two seats. So he borrowed one of the company cars, a sensible 2012 BMW. From the outside, it looked like a standard car, which was the idea. Unseen were the modifications Urahara had made in case he ever found himself in trouble.

As Ichigo began the drive back to the manor, Yuzu told him about her day in great detail while Toshiro and Karin argued about the answer to a chemistry question from earlier. Ichigo was checking on them every so often using his rear-view mirror, not liking how close Karin seemed to be getting to make her point. He was about to intervene in the argument before the two of them got too close when he heard Yuzu say something disturbing.

"… And at lunch today, Jinta gave me a flower he picked from the garden, it was so sweet of him—"

"Who?" Ichigo asked abruptly. Yuzu puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.

"Jinta Urahara. Were you even listening to me?"

"Yes, you said he gave you a flower. I just wanted to know the name of the boy who thinks he's good enough to give you flowers."

"Oh!" Yuzu giggled. "It's not like that; Jinta is just a really good friend."

In the backseat, Toshiro hid a grin and Karin snorted. Yuzu was the only person at Karakura Academy who didn't know that Jinta was crushing on her hard.

Objectively, the small part of Ichigo capable of male camaraderie felt bad for Jinta. But the rest of him was quite happy for Yuzu to keep him friend-zoned. His little sisters were in their final year of high school and were certainly becoming beautiful young women in their own right.

Ichigo hated it.

Like every big brother of every girl, he never wanted them to be hurt. Being a man, he understood the really crappy things boys could do to a teenage girl, especially one as innocent as Yuzu.

Yuzu had taken after their mother, demure and graceful, growing out her hair and taking an interest in typically 'girly things' like cooking and fashion. Unfortunately, this made her the dream girlfriend of the majority of the male student body. The only upside to this was all the boys at school put her on a pedestal, and never felt worthy enough to ask her out. The fact that Jinta mustered up enough courage to even give her a flower was impressive, not that Ichigo was going to congratulate him anytime soon.

Karin on the other hand was taller and sporty. She kept her hair on the shorter side of shoulder-length and liked sports, cars and videogames. Of the two, Karin was seen as more accessible, because boys could relate to her interests. As a result, she frequently had to reject boys looking for dates. So Karin worried him a little less, he knew she could take care of herself, but seeing her look at Toshiro when she thought nobody was watching…

As the drive went on, Ichigo could tell Yuzu was getting a little sulky because she thought he wasn't listening to her. So he made a point of commenting on her stories and asking questions every so often. The topic soon shifted to Rukia's impending visit, which Ichigo pretended to be happy for, even though he knew nothing good would come of it in the long run. Checking on the backseat, he could tell Toshiro was hiding his displeasure at the thought of the Kuchiki heir coming over.

They pulled into Kurosaki Manor and Ichigo dropped his passengers off at the front door, then drove a little further up the driveway and parked the car in the garage. As he got out, his phone started ringing. He gave the screen a quick look, frowning as he noticed it was a private number, then answered.

"Hello."

"_Beloved._"

"Rukia."

"_I'm sorry, but I'll be running a little late tonight, something has come up._"

"I love how you're going to be late to the dinner you invited yourself over for."

_Click._

His frown deepened into a scowl. It must be serious if she's ignoring his teasing. Maybe he should go on patrol a little earlier tonight.

As he made his way into the house Juushiro walked up to him.

"Miss Inoue has requested your presence in the cave, it's about the Riddler."

Yep. Definitely starting his patrol earlier.

* * *

><p><strong>Downtown Karakura.<strong>

The Batmobile dodged through traffic, utilising back streets and shortcuts to get Batman downtown as quickly as possible. A few metres behind him, Nightwing was following on his bike.

Their passage through the streets caused a stir, especially since most people knew where they were headed. Ten minutes ago, the Riddler had been found robbing an art gallery, and was making his getaway with KCPD cars in pursuit.

Ichigo had been saved from making excuses for Rukia when the call had come through about Riddler. Nightwing had insisted on coming along, claiming nostalgia for beating up Riddler, as well as looking out for Batman, who resented the reminder of his past failure.

After five more minutes of aggressive driving, they caught up with the tail-end of the police cars. The blaring sirens were joined by the steady thrum of the Batmobile engine.

When the police caught sight of Batman in their rear-view mirrors, they parted ranks to let him pass, noting with surprise Nightwing's presence behind him. Szayelaporro saw them about the same time. In response, he stuck his torso out of the car window and sat on the edge. Hair whipping in the breeze, eyes manic, he pointed a megaphone at the pursuing cars.

"Riddle me this Batman! There is a shop sign telling me I can buy one for $1, ten for $2 and one hundred for $3. I need 913, so I paid $3 how can I do this? If you want to save the hostage's life, you will find that which always runs, but never walks, often murmurs, never talks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats."

Having successfully delivered his riddles, Riddler returned his attention to getting away from the authorities.

* * *

><p>"What the hell does that mean?" Lieutenant Zaraki mumbled from his seat in the front of Madarame Ikkaku's patrol car. Madarame Ikkaku had the honour of being the first cop to try and arrest Batman. Back in the early days, when people still thought he was an urban legend, Madarame had encountered Ichigo by chance as he was beating up a drug dealer in Old Karakura Town. He tried to use the distraction to sneak up on him, but as everyone knows now, you don't sneak up on the Dark Knight. At the time, he was teased for failing to catch the crazy in the costume. But as Batman began to do the impossible, the ridicule slowly became respect as Ikkaku was credited for 'discovering' Batman.<p>

"Looks like Big Bird has an idea." Ikkaku noted, as Nightwing's motorcycle pulled away from the chase.

"And looks like that wasn't part of Granz's plan." Zaraki observed. A predatory grin grew on his face in response to Riddler's panicked gestures when he saw that Batman was still following him.

* * *

><p><strong>Karakura Eastern Suburbs.<strong>

Nightwing pulled into the driveway of 913 River Drive. It was in on the richer side of town, a nice, holiday-condo feel to the neighbourhood. After Granz shouted his challenge to Batman, the two of them figured the riddles out pretty quickly. It was obvious in the first riddle that the number 913 was important, and the answer to the riddle (he was buying house numbers) gave them the context. The second riddle's answer told them the house was near the river that divided Karakura in half. Batman had Oracle do a search for houses with the number 913 near the river and only one turned up. Privately, Uryuu thought that using a river riddle for River Drive was fairly uninspired.

'_But, I suppose the idea was to distract, not baffle. _'

Nightwing smirked as he imagined the look on Riddler's face when he realised that Batman had backup this time, and wouldn't be pulling away.

Climbing off the bike, Nightwing put his game face on. A person's life was on the line, and he would have to balance speed with caution. Move too fast, he might miss an important clue or trigger a trap. Move too slowly and the person's life could be lost.

Circling the house, he didn't notice anything obviously suspicious. A quick scan using the sensors built into his mask revealed the silhouette of a person tied to a chair in the middle of the room. Uryuu moved silently towards a window, scanning it for traps, before easing it open.

Despite his best efforts, the window creaked slightly and Nightwing froze. He stretched his senses out, dead still, and waited to see if anything reacted to the noise. He reasoned that it was probably safe to just get it over with and he jerked the window up. Luckily, there was no noise and the window rose smoothly.

With the natural grace of an acrobat, Nightwing dove into the room and sprung up with his escrima sticks at the ready. He scoped the room for threats, before lowering his weapons, but not his guard.

He walked cautiously to the person in the chair, only to notice it wasn't a person, but a mannequin dressed in a cheap green suit covered in black question marks. Taped to his chest was a folded piece of paper with a neon green question mark on it. Opening the paper carefully, Uryuu read the note.

"_Dear Batman. Riddle me this. What starts with T, ends with T and has T in it?_"

Well obviously it was a teapot. Nightwing walked over to the kitchen. Sure enough, a teapot was the only thing sitting out in the otherwise clean kitchen. After checking again for any sign of a trap, he opened the lid and pulled out another note.

"_Getting warmer._ _You saw me where I never was and where I could not be. And yet within that very place, my face you often see. What am I?_"

Hmmm. This was a little more obscure. Uryuu pondered it for a minute before deducing the answer. A reflection. He guessed that the bathroom would be the best place to look for a mirror, but not before doing a check quick of the rest of the first floor for any mirrors. Heading up the stairs, he found the main bathroom and did another scan. He saw strange markings show up in the infrared spectrum on the wall opposite the mirror. Riddler probably knew that Batman could scan for that. Making an educated guess, he looked into the mirror and saw he was right. The markings were a backward message that needed to be viewed in the mirror to be legible.

"_Under the lid._"

At this point, Nightwing was starting to get tired of the game. Clearly, this entire episode was meant to frustrate Batman and keep him busy so Riddler would have time to get away. Still, he wouldn't put it past Granz to have a random trap laid out on the off chance Batman got impatient, nor could he take the chance that Riddler was bluffing about a hostage. He decided to call Orihime and inform her of his progress.

"Oracle, I don't believe there is a hostage, but I'll see out this farce for the sake of being thorough."

"Okay Nightwing. Just so you know, Batman caught up with Granz and handed him over to the Police, he's on his way to see what Riddler set up for him."

"No problems apprehending him then?"

"No, he was surprisingly subdued about it." Orihime giggled. "I think he was feeling cheated that you being in town is what got him caught, rather than Batman outthinking him."

Uryuu smiled before once again checking for traps on the lid of the toilet. He lifted it to find another note taped there.

"_Almost there. I am a box that holds keys without locks, yet they can unlock your soul. What am I?_"

Uryuu remembered a piano in the downstairs lounge room, so walked back down the stairs. He found the piano and scans revealed more of the infrared-visible paint on the keys. Getting closer, he read the message.

"_Press me!X_"

The 'X' was on one of the C keys. Nightwing looked closer and saw a small signaller pointed outwards. Clearly pressing the key triggered something, but what?

It was pointed towards a TV screen, so Uryuu decided to press it. He was confident that it would only trigger a gloating victory message from Riddler who, same as Joker, was less interested in killing Batman and more interested in beating him.

He pressed the key and prepared to run for it. Just as predicted, it only activated the TV screen opposite the piano. The TV came on and static buzzed on the screen as the picture slowly came into focus, like the video was having trouble being received. More likely though was the Riddler edited it in for dramatic effect. Once the picture was in focus, it revealed the Riddler in front of a giant green question mark on a black background.

"_Hello Batman. By the time you see this, you've probably already realised that there is no hostage. In fact, the owner of this house is on vacation. I hope you didn't make too much of a mess solving my riddles, but I doubt it. I'd be very disappointed if you made a fuss solving them, they were pretty easy. While you were busy running around like a lost child, I was busy making my escape from those idiots at the KCPD. By now, I should be safely tucked away in my new hideout. Yes, I've moved since you found the last one. Oh, and one other thing, when you pressed the key to play this message, it also sent a signal to some friends of mine across the street. They should be arriving as I finish my message. We even rehearsed the timing for this. Enjoy!_"

"You in dere Bats!"

Nightwing calmly looked over at the door. He recognised the voice as belonging to the Ventriloquist, specifically his Ganju Shiba voice.

"Are you sh-sure this is a good i-i-idea sir?" Came a very timid second voice.

Because you couldn't have Ganju without Hanataro Yamada.

"Course it is dummy, I thought of it, don be stupid. Lefty! You an' Bull break down da door!"

Nightwing gave the door a quick scan; he saw three bodies and what appeared to be the outline of a smaller one on one of the body's arms. He mentally recalled the file Dangai Asylum had on him. It almost made him pity him.

Hanataro Yamada had always been a quiet child, often bullied and picked on by the some of the meaner kids at school. But that all stopped when his father was arrested for the murders of twenty different people. The bullies at school were too scared to make fun of him anymore, worried that he may turn out to be crazy like his father was. That was when little Hanataro learned a bad lesson; people didn't pick on you when they were scared of you. Unfortunately, this also frightened the few friends he did have away, which hurt the young child. Everyone at school was suddenly scared of the sweet, shy boy. The psychologists who would later analyse him thought this was when he developed his split personality. Part of him wanted to be friends with everyone, so he tried harder to be nice and became a bit of a doormat. But he was never really taken advantage of, because there was a dark part of him that took his bad lesson to heart, and would use fear and intimidation to get what he wanted. This darker part of him manifested itself in the form of a sock puppet on his right hand.

So now you had this normally shy child who would walk around using a sock puppet to be horrible towards his classmates. His mother sought help from professionals who managed to help him through his problems. By the time high school started, he was relatively more adjusted, but all the teenagers remembered the weird kid with the rude sock puppet, so Hanataro never really fit in with any of them. After a time, the dark part of him began reminding him about the bad lesson he learnt in school. He managed to shut it out until his twenties, when he started working as a cleaner at the History of Karakura Museum. There he found himself fascinated with the section on the old families of Karakura, specifically, the bloody end of the Shiba family.

The Shiba family had a proud history of producing policemen who served with honour in the KCPD. The very first Chief of Police in Karakura was a Shiba, and half of the Police Commissioners since have been Shibas. The last one to hold this position had been Kaien Shiba, who died in a gunfight with his brother, the Mob-Boss Ganju Shiba. Ganju was the black sheep of his family, the first Shiba ever to turn to a life of crime. It turned out that their talent for stopping crime could have easily been channelled into being successful criminals.

Some experts in criminal history however, argue that Ganju only built his organisation as high as he did because Kaien didn't want to believe his brother was a crook. And there was a truth to that, as things didn't come to a head until Ganju Shiba kidnapped their sister Kukaku Kurosaki, Ichigo's grandmother, in an attempt to ransom her back to her rich husband.

Kaien had tried to reason with his brother, but Ganju wouldn't listen, and shot his sister to make a point. Enraged, Kaien fired at him and the two of them engaged in a shootout until they both mortally wounded each other, dying with their sister before any of them could be saved by doctors.

Uryuu knew from talks with Juushiro that his mother's death was what inspired Isshin Kurosaki to study medicine, so he could save the lives of other people's families. Juushiro also mentioned he thought it was sad that two generations of Kurosaki's were so affected by tragedy. Uryuu had seen pictures of Ichigo's grandparents, and could see the resemblance Karin held to her grandmother and Ichigo held to his great-uncle.

But where Isshin Kurosaki had seen the stupidity of violence in his family's deaths, Hanataro had been in awe. To him, Ganju Shiba was everything he wanted to be. Tough as nails, he took what he wanted, and nobody gave him crap. People wanted to be his friend; they wanted to be on his good side. And that's when the bad lesson he learnt as a child was completed. If people feared him, not only would they leave him alone, but he could use that fear to control them, make them take notice of him. The dark side of him reasserted itself and took control. He broke into the locked museum gift shop and set off the alarm, but he didn't care; he only had eyes for the cash register. When the night security guard came in and confronted him, Hanataro responded by stabbing him with some scissors from the counter and killing him.

Once he was done though, Hanataro was horrified with himself. So to deal with it, his mind fractured further into two distinct parts. To symbolise this, he took down one of the gift shop's Mobster Puppets, one that bore a resemblance to Ganju Shiba, beginning the criminal career of the Ventriloquist.

All this took two seconds for Uryuu to recall, leaving him with five seconds at most to prepare for what would come through the door.

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><p><strong>I had Uryuu take on Riddler's game, because in the anime, Szayelaporro and Ishida fight each other, so I thought that should be reflected here. Also, I know I took some liberties with Ichigo's family line, but it helps connect some dots in my hybrid universe. Can't make any promises on when the next chapter will happen, but I promise there will be another at least, I have it planned out already, just need to sit and do it.<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Ok, so I wanted to keep going with the main storyline, and I do have it written down, but when I went to flesh it out, I just had this flash of inspiration to do Orihime's origin as Batgirl. I really liked Barbara's zero issue in the new 52, with the police station bit, so I adapted it as the first meeting between Orihime and Batman. For reference, Orihime as Batgirl six years ago looks like she did in season 1 of Bleach. Orihime as Oracle looks like she does in the current story, post timeskip. Same goes for Uryuu as Robin and Nightwing.**

**As always, ****I don't own Bleach, nor do I own Batman, so any characters mentioned here are the property of their respective owners.**

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><p><strong>The Batcave.<strong>

"_Oracle, I don't believe there is a hostage, but I'll see out this farce for the sake of being thorough."_

"Okay Nightwing. Just so you know, Batman caught up with Granz and handed him over to the Police, he's on his way to see what Riddler set up for him."

"_No problems apprehending him then_?"

"No, he was surprisingly subdued about it." Orihime giggled. "I think he was feeling cheated that you being in town is what got him caught, rather than Batman outthinking him."

While Batman and Nightwing were out chasing Riddler, Oracle sat at the Batcave Computer browsing the web for batarangs and other bat paraphernalia. A few years ago, when the public was starting to realise that Batman was more than just an urban legend, anything related to him or the criminals he fought became a hot item in underground auctions and online stores. The most common item to be traded around was batarangs. Batman literally threw them away and sometimes either he or the KCPD would miss them while cleaning up.

The gadgets and tools which are sometimes leftover from fights range from simple guns and clubs to more complicated things like Joker Gas, or one of Penguin's umbrella guns. It was too dangerous to lose track of this stuff, so to counter the problem, the KCPD introduced an exchange program trading money for dangerous weapons. The more dangerous the item, the bigger the reward. The program was sponsored in part by the state and partly by Karakura charity (Kurosaki Inc. is a major contributor) and was considered a success until some people began to try and make money from the program.

Unfortunately for them, the KCPD got wise to what they were doing when they noticed some of the same faces bringing in weapons from fights. To discourage people from trying to make a job of this, Commissioner Inoue started to vary the reward system according to an internal schedule he devised. Some days, gadgets would be worth money, others would get you a coupon for a free meal at a local restaurant or discount at a local store. With no set reward, it became harder to take advantage of the system and some balance was achieved.

The side effect of this was some of those people who used to turn up at the local Police Station began to set their own prices online. Tracking each of these people down individually to reclaim every piece of equipment was time consuming and every person they warned off or arrested would often be replaced the next week. Ichigo wasn't hurting for money, so he asked Orihime to go online every so often to just buy them back. In a way, it was simply paying people to retrieve their stuff for them, and while she was online, Orihime could check for the dangerous items, so Ichigo could go and confiscate them personally.

Speaking of, Orihime had a hit on one the search programs she had running. Checking it out, somebody in suburban Karakura was selling a vial of liquid fear toxin. She clicked the link to read the description.

'_Fresh from the evidence locker, this vial of authentic Scarecrow fear toxin is the real deal. The same formula used in Scarecrow's failed attempt to poison the water supply, this object would make a great addition to any collector of Karakura villainy or fun addition to the water cooler next time work stresses you out_'

Hmmm, the bit about it being from the evidence locker might be cause for concern, assuming it isn't embellishment to help sell the product. Like any shopping on the internet, sometimes the quality of the item is exaggerated. One time, Ichigo and Renji had burst in on some poor guy with an affro who was selling what turned out to be a water pistol painted silver and definitely not one of Mr Freeze's weapons.

Real or fake, Oracle could delay the sale by casting doubt on the authenticity of the product. Clicking on the comment box she accuses Ikkanzaka07 of lying about his product and implies that his stupidity may be the result of his mother taking substances while she was pregnant. Orihime personally detested trolling, but spending the amount of time she did on the internet, she was very good at replicating it and understood how to best use it to her advantage. Her comment would likely start a petty argument with the seller and hopefully either make people think twice about buying or goad the seller into revealing something useful.

Sitting in her chair, Oracle let out a sigh. There was a time when she would have gone out herself to take care of the problem. While Orihime was a team player and happy to help out however she could, she missed being able to suit up and take the fight to crime.

As a toddler her much older brother Sora took her away from abusive parents in Bounthaven and moved her to Karakura. The two of them were taken in by their aunt Retsu Unohana, a doctor at the Karakura Hospital. Being so young, Orihime barely remembered her parents and instead looked to her aunt as a mother figure during her formative years. Wanting to be just like her Auntie Retsu, Orihime became the overachiever of the family, applying herself to her schoolwork at Karakura Academy and enrolling in every extra-curricular activity she had time for.

Orihime was not only smart, she had the grace, flexibility and balance of a world-class dancer or gymnast and could have gone on to Olympic competition, were it not for puberty. On top of this, her aunt and brother insisted she take martial art classes (She did grow up in a pre-Batman Karakura) where Orihime met her best friend Tatsuki, who she would years later learn to be the daughter of the feared Mob Boss Arisawa.

All these natural talents gave her the potential to become a great hero, but she never had the desire to be one. Orihime had wanted to be a Doctor like her Auntie until one night, when she visited her brother at the Police Station.

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><p><strong>Six years ago. Karakura Central Police Headquaters.<strong>

Sixteen-year-old Orihime Inoue walked into the lobby of the KCPD building and asked the receptionist to see her brother, the newly promoted Commissioner. Sora had been promoted the week before and tasked with handling the Batman. It was a controversial promotion, considering his age and the fact he was Pro-Batman, but City Hall wanted it taken care of, whatever the outcome. To that end, Sora had been trying to get the attention of Batman, so he could come in and they could discuss working together. By this point in time, Batman had been operating for the past three years and was cementing his fearsome reputation in Karakura.

The receptionist waved her through with a smile, offering to take her coat. Orihime was the darling of the KCPD and had been since her brother started working there. Everyone looked out for her like their own little sister. After depositing her coat, she made her way to the stairs. In her own world, she almost didn't notice Ichigo Kurosaki coming down them. She bumped into him and had to catch herself, reaching out and grabbing Ichigo by the arm.

"Hey, careful there Hime."

"Oh, Ichigo, wha-what are you doing here."

Orihime's face flushed as she cursed herself for the stutter. She knew that Ichigo went for confident, worldly women and if she wanted him to stop seeing her as a child, she needed to act like a mature lady. With that in mind, she wished she'd chosen something a bit more sophisticated to wear today. Her purple 'Hey Chappy' T-shirt probably wasn't helping her cause.

"Catching up with Grimmy. I needed some legal advice for a thing at work, and corporate lawyers are so boring, so I decided to drop by on the way home. I'm guessing you're here to see Sora." Ichigo replied, gesturing to the brown paper bag in her hand.

"Yes, he works so hard he forgets to eat sometimes." Orihime giggled.

"I'll bet. So, can I have my arm back?"

Orihime had been valiantly fighting down her blush for the last 20 seconds, but Ichigo's casual comment brought it back, redder than before. She decided to push through and pretend it wasn't there. She let go of Ichigo's arm and started playing with her hair in what she hoped was a suitably flirty manor.

"Well, have a good evening Ichigo, I won't keep you much longer. Are you coming for dinner next week? Aunt Retsu said she invited everyone over."

"Sure, as long as nothing comes up. Bye Hime."

Ichigo pulled her in for a quick, half-hearted hug with one arm, then flashed her a smile on his way to the door.

Orihime watched him go with a frown on her face. The smile he just gave her felt forced. Restsu Unohana was a friend of the Kurosaki family; she had worked with Ichigo's father and was still friends with their butler Mr Ukitake. So when Unohana went to visit, Orihime was sometimes brought along. She vaguely remembered what Ichigo was like before his parent's deaths. The two of them had played together; Ichigo was kind to a shy and awkward girl, which made an impression on young Orihime.

The years following his parent's death, Ichigo had been less interested in spending time with her, so Orihime usually played with his little sisters whenever she came to visit. Being older now, she understood why he seemed different, more serious whenever she saw him. Around the time she was ten, Ichigo disappeared, Mr Ukitake telling them he had gone abroad to do some studying at a foreign but prestigious boarding school. While she missed him, kids were resilient, so Orihime spent more time with the twins and other friends, but she never forgot him.

One day, about three and a half years later, she heard through the news that he was back. Poor Orihime was unprepared for how handsome and mature he was when she next saw him. She was tongue-tied and red-faced, but Ichigo had taken it in stride, sparing her feelings with kind words and easy smiles. Back then, Orihime was just developing her crush on him, so she never noticed how forced it seemed. But as the next few years passed and her schoolgirl crush settled into a young woman's attraction, she began to notice how he seemed to go through the motions whenever social obligation was around, like before.

Orihime wanted to help him. Despite her sometimes childishness, she was very mature for her age and was smart enough to conclude that his 'playboy antics' and other typical young, rich man behaviour were his way of trying to fill a hole in his heart, as he had never really gotten over the loss of his family. Later on, she would learn that Ichigo worked through his grief in a different way to what she initially thought, but for now, she was determined to heal his heart.

Thinking all these thoughts had caused her to zone out again, and she nearly bumped into someone else. This person was much less friendly than the man she bumped into earlier.

"Why hello Miss, you're looking lovely this evening"

Orihime looked up into the pasty-white and painfully thin face of Acidwire. A hollow that grew up an orphan, not even he knew his real name, so everyone just called him his street name. A higher level drug dealer, the KCPD brought him in on the hope he would be willing to roll on some of his fellow dealers and do some damage to the less legitimate side of Penguin's operations.

"Move along ass-hat." Officer Ikkaku pushed him forward.

Acidwire complied and began to walk forward, turning around to lick his lips at Orihime. This earned him another shove from Ikkaku.

"Sorry about that Hime. The dirtbag promised to talk about his jobs for Penguin. So far he's just wasted our time."

Orihime turned around and smiled at her brother. The KCPD had been frustrated for years by how they couldn't link Penguin to the illegal things they knew he was doing but couldn't conclusively prove. She looked him up and down and decided she didn't like how tired he looked.

"Sora, have you slept yet?" She scolded.

"I'm fine, but I'll be a lot better once I can nail down this Batman guy."

They started walking over to Sora's office. On the way, Orihime noticed that one of the rooms she passed had a model of what they thought Batman looked like. On the wall, there was a whiteboard covered in writing and to the right, there stood a mannequin. The dummy had been put in a Kevlar vest and had a cape around its neck with a black domino mask on its face. The mask had some black spikes attached to the top on the left and right side. In the dummy's hand, it held a batarang, something Orihime would soon become very familiar with.

As they walked by the door to the room, the power went out. Three seconds later, the back-up power came on, turning every second light on and rebooting the security systems, leaving non-essential systems off to conserve the little power the police generator could output.

Sora wasn't an idiot. Turning off any power in Karakura was not cheap. With all the criminal activity in Karakura, the power company had some of the best security the city had to offer. That means someone was bribed to let this happen. Evidently, Acidwire was more important than they realised if Louisenbairn was worried enough to go this far.

His first priority was keeping Orihime safe. He quickly opened the door to the briefing room where he and some senior officers had been brainstorming about Batman.

"Stay in here until I come get you. Put that body armour on and hide under the desk or something. I'll be back once this is sorted. I love you Hime."

"Love you too Sora."

Sora dashed off to track down Acidwire and Orihime locked the door behind her. She walked quickly over to the Kevlar vest and up close; she noticed it was dark grey with a bat symbol painted in black on the chest.

She took the vest off the dummy and put it on. It was a little tight on the upper torso, but otherwise fitted alright. After that, she found herself staring at the mask and cape. Orihime had heard the stories and the rumours; she'd snuck a look at the reports and despite herself, she was slightly fascinated by the idea of Batman. She'd daydreamed once or twice what it would be like to be a costumed vigilante, and deciding to indulge herself, she put the cape and mask on.

Most people would have been concerned by the possibility that criminals were assaulting a police station they were stuck in, but Orihime saw an opportunity to indulge in a daydream of hers. Not that she was blasé about the danger she could be in, she simply had supreme confidence in her brother's ability to handle the situation.

Grabbing the batarang, she walked over to a window. The lighting was just right for her to see a reflection. She drew the cape around her and was quite happy she had chosen her grey jeans today, matching the dark colours of the cape and body armour. She struck a pose and giggled at how silly she looked.

_CRASH!_

Orihime whirled around, her eyes widened as she took in the sight of the broken door on the floor and Acidwire walking towards her menacingly.

"Oh, hey there little girl. Looks like I caught you playing dress-up."

There was a sick smile on his thin face as he brandished the kitchen knife he'd stolen from somewhere.

Orihime froze for one whole second, before her training kicked in. Without thinking, she flung the batarang in her hand. Through natural instinct, she got the balance and angle right, nailing Acidwire in the hand, breaking his middle three knuckles and shocking his hand into dropping the knife.

"ARGH!"

Taking advantage of the distraction she charged forward jumping from roughly a metre out and leading with her foot. She impacted on his chest, pushing him out into the hall, where he flew back until he hit a wall. Orihime deliberately chose to kick him, knowing her boots and forward momentum would do more damage than her bare hands. With his bony face, punching him would have hurt her more. She stood up from the crouch she landed in and looked for an exit.

Temporarily stunned, Acidwire recovered quickly and re-evaluated his target. Once his eyes focused on her, Orihime knew her window for escape had closed.

"You'll pay for that bitch!"

"Here." Spoke a deep voice from her left.

As Orihime eyes flicked to the left to take in the potential new threat, she reacted on instinct, catching the police baton thrown to her. Acidwire was waiting for a distraction, but had once again underestimated his opponent who'd never stopped watching him, her natural situational awareness warning her of the impending attack.

Orihime swung her left arm and connected with Acidwire's face. She brought her arm back in a devastating backhand, then swung her hand in an under-armed arc, impacting him in the stomach with the rounded tip and doubling him over. Taking a step back, she dropped the baton, put both her hands on his shoulders, balanced herself on her left foot and drove upwards with her right knee. The knockout blow connected with Acidwire's face breaking his nose and rattling his brain hard enough to rob him of consciousness.

Orihime took a step back and let out a breath. She assumed that the person who threw the baton wouldn't have helped her if he meant her harm. She'd been so focused on Acidwire when she saw the baton flying over to her, she didn't even register who threw it. She assumed one of the precinct cops had helped her out, though thinking about it now, she thought it was weird he didn't get involved in the fight. Turning to her left to thank the man, she froze in her tracks when she saw who it was.

Steeped in one of the shadows made by the sparse lighting, the Batman seemed to tower over her. The adrenalin in her system had a second surge as her eyes widened to take in the imposing sight he presented. Her immediate impression of him was of a living shadow. She fully understood why the hollows were terrified of him.

His hands flashed out again and on reflex, Orihime caught the standard issue handcuffs he'd obviously grabbed from one of the desks. She looked at them for a moment before she realised he meant for her to use them on the criminal. She bent down by Acidwire and pulled his hands behind his back, securing them together. She looked up and saw he wasn't in the same spot anymore.

She heard a sound behind her, and turned around to see him tucking the batarang she used into his belt. Now that the immediate danger had passed, Orihime became more aware of the sound of gunfire coming from the other side of the building. Batman started walking toward it, and Orihime watched him go, unsure whether she should say something or not. Opening the door into the next hallway, Batman paused, looking over his shoulder at her. Orihime held his gaze.

"Nice costume." He said, in his deep Bat-voice.

Orihime nodded dumbly in response to the compliment. She blinked and he was gone.

Months later, when she was more comfortable around Ichigo, she would question him about this night. She would even tease him about his 'dramatics.' But for now, Orihime was intensely aware that she had just stood in the presence of the Dark Knight.

She went through the rest of the night in a slight daze. She nodded automatically in response to her brother's questions, recounting what happened in clinical detail. Once he was assured she was ok, Orihime went home, escorted by Sargent Zaraki. Her aunt was working at the hospital so she had the place to herself. She put her clothes in the wash, showered, put some comfy pants on to go with her pyjama top and sat in front of the TV with her favourite dessert. Red bean paste on ice cream helped her think. She watched the news with detachment, while she snacked on her treat and considered the last few hours. Going over her encounter with Batman again, she realised something very important.

He was just a man, flesh and blood, like the rest of us.

Having said that, he was also obviously a very dangerous man. One who had trained his body to the peak of human fitness. The athlete in her recognised the power he held in his body. She also remembered the multi-pouched belt he was wearing. The way he tucked the batarang into one of the pockets, she assumed he kept a bunch of tech in there.

Suddenly feeling very tired, Orihime decided to finish her snack and go to bed. That night, she dreamed of being a vigilante again, but this time, her costume had much darker colours and her chest sported a bat symbol. A seed had been planted that night, and two weeks later, it would begin to grow when she browsed for grappling hooks online.

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><p><strong>This origin arc is like Toshiro's, it's going to be broken up into two parts. The next chapter will show the first meeting of Batgirl and Batman, and I'm planning to introduce two other characters to my little DCAnime universe.**

**On another note, one of the interesting things about the New 52 (The current canon if anyone reading this doesn't follow) is it went back to Barbara Gordon as Batgirl, with her recovering from being shot by Joker. I'm in two minds as to whether I want to do that or not, because I really like the Barbara Gordon Batgirl, and wouldn't mind giving Orihime some non-flashback action, but I've also been considering making Karin the next Batgirl. If anybody reading this has an opinion, I wouldn't mind hearing it, I don't promise I'll go with what you advise, but I like to talk about my ideas out loud. Thanks for reading.**


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